Interviewer instructions
Question 16. What is your completed age?
(For babies not yet fully one year old, write "0")
Answers to this question are to be based on people's declarations, without reference to ID cards, driver's licenses or other documents.
The completed age at the time of the census of the person with whom the census is being carried out, is to be written into the applicable boxes as numbers. For example: Let's say someone was born on November 2 1992. Even if that person would be completing the age of 9 ten days after the date of the census, the completed age that is to be written down is "8". For babies who had not yet completed one year (12 months), "0" is to be entered.
Among our people there is a general tendency to express their ages in round numbers ending in a 5 or a 0. For example: 21 or 22 year-old people may state their age as "20", and 36 or 37-year-olds, as "35". If such round numbers are provided in response to the age question, an effort is to be made to obtain accurate information about the completed age by asking for the year and month born in order to determine the true age, doing so in such a way that would not give rise to an argument.
When necessary in entering the completed age, "Age based on year of birth table" on the back cover of the census notebook may be used. If the birthday's day and month fall between the dates of October 21 - December 31, one should be subtracted from the completed age displayed in the table. If, however, the birthday falls between the dates of January 1 - October 21, the ages displayed in the table are to be taken just as they are.