Missing a birth certificate is common enough that two different documents exist to cover the gap. They are not interchangeable.
Two different documents for the same gap
A declaration of age comes from a court. An NPC attestation of birth comes from the National Population Commission. Both exist because not everyone has an original birth certificate to show.
Confusing the two, or assuming either one does the other's job, is where most people get stuck.
What a court declaration of age is
This is a sworn statement about your age, taken before a commissioner for oaths, a notary public, or a judge of the Federal High Court or a higher court.
It is used where a birth certificate cannot be produced, and some agencies, such as immigration on its lost-passport checklist, accept it as a stand-in.
What an NPC attestation of birth is
This is NPC's own certificate for adults aged 18 and above who have no birth certificate.
Applying for it in fact asks for a NIN and a court sworn affidavit. NPC has not published a fixed attestation fee: its own portal's price lookup returned ₦15,000 on the day this was checked, but other checks of the same portal have returned different amounts, so confirm the current price before you pay.
Why they are not simply either-or
Since NPC's own attestation service asks for a court sworn affidavit as part of applying, the two documents usually work together rather than as substitutes.
In practice, that often means getting the declaration of age affidavit first, then using it to support your NPC attestation application, rather than picking one and skipping the other.
Which one the institution asking you probably wants
If an agency names "an NPC attestation" specifically, expect to go through NPC's own process, affidavit included.
If an agency simply asks for proof of age and accepts a court document, a declaration of age alone may be enough. When the wording is unclear, ask the institution directly rather than assuming.
Common mistakes
- Treating the two documents as competing options when NPC's process often needs both together.
- Applying to NPC without first getting the affidavit its own requirements ask for.
- Assuming a fee seen on one visit to the portal will be exactly the same on another.
- Using this route for a child. NPC's attestation applies to adults; younger children go through birth registration instead.
If you are not sure your document will be accepted
Some institutions have their own house rules about which of the two they trust, on top of what the law technically allows.
Ask before you start the paperwork, not after. A short phone call to the institution can save a second trip to court or to NPC.
For the affidavit step itself, see our affidavit guides. For a related comparison on the court side, see affidavit to correct a misspelt name. For swearing a document from outside Nigeria, see swearing a Nigerian affidavit abroad.