Alba-Keneth Alert in Guatemala 2026: How to Report a Missing Child (Call 1546)

If a child or adolescent is missing right now, call 1546 (ALBA-KENETH) or 110 (PNC) first, then read on.

Quick summary

• When: immediately. The official reporting page instructs anyone who learns of the disappearance or abduction of a child or adolescent to report it de manera inmediata (immediately).
• Phone: 1546 for the ALBA-KENETH Alert System; 110 for the National Civil Police (PNC). The ALBA-KENETH site states reports are attended 24 hours.
• Online: the activation form at albakeneth.gob.gt/activar-una-alerta/. The form states the information is sent immediately to the Unidad Operativa (Operational Unit).
• In person: PNC stations and substations, Public Ministry (MP) permanent-attention offices, departmental delegations of the Procuraduría General de la Nación (PGN), or the headquarters the official reporting page lists as the Unidad Operativa in Guatemala City.
• Have ready: a photograph of the child, an identification document number (the form’s field shows CUI or passport number), a mobile number and an account of what happened.
• Fee: the online form, the reporting page, the ALBA-KENETH homepage and the quoted articles of the law do not mention any fee.
• Legal basis: Decree 28-2010, the Law of the ALBA-KENETH Alert System, and its Regulation.

What the Alba-Keneth alert is

Decree 28-2010 regulates the ALBA-KENETH Alert System for the immediate location and protection of abducted or missing children (Art. 1). Article 3 defines the principle of celeridad (speed): search, location and protection actions for a missing or abducted child or adolescent must be carried out with urgency, priority and immediacy, to secure the child’s integrity and protection.

Under Art. 11, search actions are promoted and carried out by the National Coordinator of the ALBA-KENETH System (Coordinadora Nacional). The online form states that reports go to the Unidad Operativa (Operational Unit), and in the Regulation text we reviewed, Art. 27 assigns deactivation of the alert to the Operational Unit of the National Coordinator. That Regulation text comes from a version previously published on albakeneth.gob.gt, and we could not extract text from the current Regulation PDF, so the names of these bodies on this page are the ones used in the sources we reviewed. The law text published on albakeneth.gob.gt marks reforms by Decree 5-2012.

Who should report, and when

The official reporting page puts it without conditions: when the disappearance or abduction of a child or adolescent becomes known, a report must be filed immediately. The instruction is not limited to parents. The online form has a required field for the relationship to the victim (Parentesco con la víctima).

Do not wait to see whether the child comes back. The reporting page asks for an immediate report, and the law’s urgency principle (Art. 3) requires search actions with urgency, priority and immediacy.

If you are dealing with another kind of crime, or want general guidance on filing a complaint, see how to file a criminal complaint and the Public Ministry complaint.

Reporting channels

The ALBA-KENETH homepage lists the address 20 calle 6-57, zona 1, and states that reports are attended 24 hours. For another PNC route, see the PNC Digital Station guide.

What the online form asks for

The activation form on albakeneth.gob.gt is in Spanish. These are the fields we recorded from the form on 15 October 2026. Our record does not show which fields refer to the child and which to the person filing the report, and the form may show more fields than are listed here, so read each section on the form itself as you fill it in.

The form states: “La información se enviará de manera inmediata a la Unidad Operativa” (the information will be sent immediately to the Operational Unit).

Step by step

1. Call 1546 or 110 as soon as you know the child is missing. You can do this while you prepare the online form or travel to an office.
2. Gather what the form asks for: a photograph of the child, an identification document number (CUI or passport), a mobile number where you can be reached, and the place and date of the disappearance.
3. File the report online at albakeneth.gob.gt/activar-una-alerta/, or in person at a PNC station, an MP permanent-attention office, a PGN departmental delegation or the Unidad Operativa headquarters in the capital listed on the official reporting page.
4. Write a clear account of the disappearance: when and where the child was last seen and anything that may help locate them.
5. Attach any supporting documents you have. The form’s optional upload field names judicial or administrative documents, DPI and birth records.
6. Keep your phone on. The mobile number is a required field.

What happens after you report

• The information goes to the Unidad Operativa. The online form states it is sent immediately to the Operational Unit.
• The Public Ministry investigates. Under Art. 11 of Decree 28-2010, the MP takes up the criminal complaint immediately to start investigations and legal action to locate the child and to prosecute those responsible for the abduction or disappearance. It also takes part in the search actions of the National Coordinator, requesting habeas corpus (exhibición personal) and searches (allanamientos) where necessary.
• Officials who learn where the child is must pass it on. In the Regulation text we reviewed, Art. 28 requires public officials and employees who receive information on the child’s whereabouts to notify the Operational Unit of the National Coordinator, so that it coordinates, analyses the information and ensures the child’s protection, under the principles of urgency and the best interests of the child.

The law requires urgent action; it does not set a guaranteed deadline for finding a child. If you or the child need support as victims, see PNC victim support services. If the disappearance is linked to violence at home, see reporting domestic violence to the PNC.

If you are abroad or a foreign resident

• The identification field of the online form accepts a CUI or a passport number.
• The ALBA-KENETH site does not describe a separate procedure for filing from outside Guatemala, or how to dial 1546 from abroad.
• If a Guatemalan child or adolescent is located and protected by foreign authorities, the Regulation text we reviewed provides that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through its embassies and consulates abroad, gives consular assistance and protection, acting in the best interests of the child.

When the child is found: deactivating the alert

In the Regulation text we reviewed, Art. 27 makes deactivation the responsibility of the Operational Unit of the National Coordinator, applying the Regulation’s criteria and the protocols created for that purpose. The official deactivation page names the ALBA-KENETH Operational Unit, or the authority that took the report, as the place to present the child. Its checklist asks for:

Related pages

• File a criminal complaint online (MP) or at a PNC station
• Public Ministry criminal complaint
• PNC victim support services
• PNC Digital Station
• Reporting domestic violence to the PNC

Sources

• Decree 28-2010, Law of the ALBA-KENETH Alert System, Art. 1, 3 and 11 (PDF published on albakeneth.gob.gt, retrieved 15 October 2026). The Congress copy could not be retrieved on that date.
• ALBA-KENETH homepage, online activation form, reporting page and deactivation page (albakeneth.gob.gt, checked 15 October 2026).
• Regulation of the Law of the ALBA-KENETH Alert System, Art. 27 and 28 and the consular-assistance provision, from the version previously published on albakeneth.gob.gt; the current Regulation PDF could not be text-extracted on 15 October 2026, so body names follow the version we reviewed.