CONSULAR REPORT OF BIRTH ABROAD

The American Citizen Services Unit accepts applications for Consular Reports of Birth Abroad by appointment only.  Please make an appointment online by visiting our appointment page. A Consular Report of Birth Abroad is a certificate that states that the child is a United States citizen from birth, and it is equivalent to a state birth certificate issued in the United States.

Most, but not all children born abroad to a United States citizen parent are eligible to be documented as an American citizen through issuance of a Consular Report of Birth Abroad and a United States passport.

DOCUMENTATION

Please come to the Consulate with the following original items when applying to document your newborn child as an American citizen, along with a completed application, accessible here:  Consular Report of Birth Abroad application form (PDF).

Both parents and the child must appear at the Consulate in person on the date of the appointment. Parents typically choose to apply for the child's United States passport at the same time they apply for the Consular Report of Birth Abroad.  Please complete the DS-11 passport application to bring with the Consular Report of Birth Abroad application to the interview.

The list of documents below cover both the Consular Report of Birth Abroad and the United States Passport application requirements:

• The child's official, local birth certificate issued by the district office
• An English translation of the birth certificate
• The parents' passports dating back to time of conception of the child
• A certified copy of the parents' marriage certificate, if applicable
• Evidence of the termination of any previous marriages, if applicable
• Payment of the fee

If also applying for a passport, two identical photographs are required. They must be recent, 2 x 2 inches (with the size of the head between 1 and 1 3/8 inches), color or black and white. The photos must be clear, front view, full face, and in focus. The background must be plain white or off-white. Please print the applicant's first and last names on the backs of both photos.

In cases where the American citizenship of a child is to be established, Consular Officers may require other documentation before a Consular Report of Birth Abroad or a passport can be issued. The Consular Officer will inform you of what documents may still be required.

For children born to one United States citizen and one foreign national, the American citizen parent will need to show five years of physical presence in the United States, two of which must be after the age of 14.  Examples of items that show physical presence are school transcripts, income tax returns with W-2 Forms, Social Security Earnings History, pay receipts, passport entry/exit stamps in current and previous passports, etc. Please do not sign any documents until asked to so by the Consular Officer.

DNA EXAMINATIONS

In some instances it is not possible to conclusively determine the United States citizenship of a child at birth.  In these cases, the Consular Officer may request a DNA exam to establish paternity.   This will involve the supervised taking of saliva samples from the child and the father.  Please do not conduct independent DNA exams, as only results from Consulate ordered tests can be used to determine a genetic relationship for citizenship purposes.

Normal processing time for the Consular Report of Birth Abroad and a United States Passport application is three weeks.

General Information Sheet on Consular Report of Birth Abroad (pdf)