citizenship dual-citizenship birth-certificate czech-republic
Can parents withhold their birth certificate/marriage license from their kids
<p>I had a falling-out with my parents awhile ago. Haven't talked to them in almost two years. They were born in the Czech Republic.</p>

<p>I am wanting to apply for a dual citizenship in CZ, which is easy as long as your parents were born in Czech. All they require is a copy of your parent's birth certificates as well as a copy of their marriage license. </p>

<p>Two weeks ago, I sent my parents a letter, asking them for these documents, along with a return envelope, but it seems like they are unwilling to cooperate. </p>

<p>Is there a way to get these documents, legally, in order that I might be able to obtain my dual CZ citizenship?</p>

<p>The Czech Consulate General in New York has a <a href="https://www.mzv.cz/consulate.newyork/en/visa_and_consular_information/czech_citizenship/duplicates_czech_birth_marriage_and/index_1.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">page</a> about this.  Presumably a similar situation would prevail at other Czech consulates, so this answer should help even if you do not reside in its territory.</p>
<p>The page notes that if you are not &quot;a relative&quot; you can &quot;enclose an explanation letter why do you need the duplicate of the birth [or marriage] certificate.&quot;  So it's possible that they'd give you a copy anyway, but, to increase your chances, you might want to include a letter explaining that you need the document to demonstrate your own Czech nationality.  You can also include a copy of your birth certificate as evidence of your relationship.</p>
<p>The page links to the forms you have to submit with the request for the certificate.  They reflect the same possibility, slightly more specifically.  The birth certificate application says</p>
<blockquote>
<p>6. V případě, že nejste v tabulce, uveďte vztah k dítěti nebo jiný právní zájem:</p>
<p>6. In case you are not the person in a table, relation must be stated or any other legal interest:</p>
</blockquote>
<p>As far as I can tell &quot;the person in a table&quot; means &quot;a person in the list of birth certificates being requested with this form.&quot;  That is, you don't need to explain yourself if you are the child whose birth certificate it is, nor if you are one of the parents shown on the certificate.</p>
<p>The marriage certificate form similarly says</p>
<blockquote>
<p>6. V případě, že nejste osobou uvedenou v tabulce, uveďte vztah k osobám nebo jiný právní zájem</p>
<p>(If the applicant is not listed in the table below as the Husband or Wife, please provide an explanation of the relationship or legal interest which authorizes this submission.):</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This last sentence hints at the one thing that I unfortunately do not know, which is the criteria for judging whether a given explanation is legally sufficient to authorize the release of the certificate to the person who submitted the application.  I guess your case is as good as it gets, but it's possible that the law prevents the certificates to be issued to you while your parents are still alive.</p>
