Apply for your child's Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) if you are a U.S. citizen or national, and your child was born in a foreign country.
A CRBA documents that your child was a U.S. citizen at birth. The CRBA does not serve as proof of the identity of the child’s legal parents. We issue CRBAs to children under age 18 who were born abroad and got U.S. citizenship or nationality at birth.
The names on the CRBA include the parents who have a genetic or gestational connection to the child. The parent(s) passing U.S. citizenship to their child must have their name(s) on the CRBA. A parent passing U.S. citizenship may approve the other parent, who is not passing citizenship, to have their name on the CRBA.
Apply online at most U.S embassies and consulates. Go to your U.S. embassy or consulate webpage to get steps on how to apply. To start the process of applying online, go to our MyTravelGov page.
If one parent is not a U.S. citizen or if the U.S. citizen parent passing citizenship to your child is not present, that parent who is not present should complete Form DS-5507. Use this form to list the periods of time the parent, who is not present, spent in the United States.
If your child was born out-of-wedlock, and the father is a U.S. citizen or non-citizen U.S national, use Form DS-5507. The father of the child must sign Form DS-5507 at a U.S. embassy or consulate, or in front of an official who registers births or gives oaths.
Our Vital Records Office can help you replace or change the CRBA, or request more copies of it at any time.
If you got U.S. nationality when you were born in one of the U.S. territories listed below, you are not eligible for a CRBA. You are not eligible because you are not considered to have been born abroad.
The locations and time periods include:
