Reporting The Birth Of A Child Overseas And Getting A Social Security Number

If you are a US citizen and have a child overseas, you need to know what to do to ensure that they get all of their rights. Reporting the birth is important and you need to look at applying for a US passport and social security number for them. This will all take place at the US consulate in the country that you are located in.

Reporting The Birth

The first step that you need to take to get a social security number will be to report the birth of your child. This will result in the consulate providing you with a US Consular Report of Birth Abroad or CRBA. The CRBA will work like a US birth certificate and cannot be used to travel.  This is why you will also need to apply for a US passport after reporting the birth. It is possible to submit your application for a CRBA, passport and social security number at the same time.

Before you make an appointment with the consulate, you will need to get your documents in order. The most important documents will be the ones that prove Transmission of US Citizenship by the US citizen parent or parents. These documents will include proof that one parent is a US citizen, the existence of a blood relation between the child and the US citizen and evidence that the US citizen was in the US before the child’s birth. 

Some of the documents that you can use for this purpose will include tax statements, rental agreements employment records, property tax records, and academic transcripts. US passport stamps will be considered as part of the evidence, but will not be accepted as the sole evidence.  A driver’s license will not be accepted.

You will also need to have a copy and original of both parents’ government-issued photo ID.  The original birth certificate of the child from the country you are in also needs to be provided. If the parents are married, a copy and the original marriage certificate is required. You will also need to provide a self-addressed and pre-paid envelope with the application.

The application form DS-2029 will need to be completed and submitted at your appointment.  You will be able to download this form from the consulate website. You are also going to have to pay a fee which is the equivalent of $100.

When you arrive for the appointment, your child has to be present at the interview. It is possible to report the birth with only one parent. This should be the US citizen parent if the other parent is not a US citizen. 

Applying For A Social Security Number

  

During the appointment to report the birth of the child, you will also be able to apply for a social security number. This is important for a number of reasons, particularly if you want to go back to the United States in the future. The first step in this process will be to download and complete form SS-5. This is the same application that you would complete for a new or replacement social security card.

As this is the first application for a social security card for your child, you will also need to complete another form. This will need to be submitted with the passport application which occurs during the same appointment. This form is the customer SSN statement. 

In terms of supporting documentation, you will need to provide the birth certificate of the child.  This is the certificate that you get from the country you are currently living in. You also need to provide a copy of your passport or the passport of the American parent. No other documentation is generally required. 

Applying For A US Passport

  

During the same appointment at the consulate, you will be able to apply for a US passport for your child. This is important if you want to travel back to the US with the child. After they have a CRBA, they will need to travel in and out of the US on their US passport. 

For the passport application, both parents will need to be present at the interview. If only one parent can come to the appointment, they will need to fill out form DS-3053 which is a statement of consent. This will need to be submitted with the passport application. You also need a photocopy of there is, both the front and the back. In certain countries, the DS-3053 form will need to be notarized at the US embassy or consulate and not by a local notary public. 

If you are the sole legal guardian of the child, you will need to submit certain evidence of this fact with the application. This will include a court order that provides you with sole custody or a court order permitting you to apply for the passport. A copy of the birth certificate that lists only you as a parent or a death certificate of the other parent will also be accepted. 

The application form to apply for the passport will be the DS-11 which you should not sign before the appointment. You also need to provide the original and a copy of the child’s birth certificate and the photo IDs of both parents. 

A photo of the child will also need to be provided. The consulate website will generally have a listing of the requirements for the photo. A prepaid and self-addressed envelope will also need to be provided if you have not already done this with the CRBA application. 

The passport application does come with a fee and this will be applicable over and above the fee for the CRBA. You will be able to pay this fee in cash or with a credit card. The credit card holder will need to be present. The processing time for this application will generally be 2 weeks.

If you have a baby while overseas, you need to report the birth at the US consulate or embassy.  During the appointment to do this, you can also apply for a social security number and US passport for your child.