If you are a U.S. citizen (or non-citizen national) and have a child overseas, you should report their birth at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate as soon as possible so that a passport and/or Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) can be issued as an official record of the child’s claim to U.S. citizenship or nationality. The U.S. embassy or consulate will provide you one original copy of an eligible child’s CRBA.
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 born abroad who acquired U.S. citizenship or nationality at birth and are under the age of 18 at the time of the application.
The name or names listed on the CRBA are the U.S. citizen or national’s parent(s) who have a genetic or gestational connection to the child. The name of the parent(s) through whom the child’s claim to U.S. citizenship is made must be listed on the CRBA. A parent who is not transmitting U.S. citizenship may be listed on the CBRA with consent of the parent who is transmitting U.S. citizenship.
Apply for a CRBA by completing Form DS-2029. For instructions, visit the webpage for the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate in the country where your child was born and navigate to the American Citizen Services section. The application must be signed in front of a consular officer, notary public, or other person qualified to administer oaths.
If one parent is not a U.S. citizen or if the U.S. citizen parent who is transmitting citizenship to your child is not present when applying for a CRBA, that parent should complete Form DS-5507 as supporting evidence, and it can be used to list the periods of time they 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 to acknowledge the child and voluntarily agree to financially support them. Form DS-5507 must be signed by the father at a U.S. embassy or consulate or in front of a U.S. or foreign official who registers births or who is responsible for oaths.
We are currently offering customers the option to apply online for a CRBA at U.S embassies and consulates in Germany, France, Japan, Mexico, and Australia. We are also offering the option to apply online at our U.S. embassies in London, England; Stockholm, Sweden; Lima, Peru; Lisbon, Portugal; and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
We will expand the online service to more countries later this spring and summer. To apply online, go to our MyTravelGov page to learn about how to create an account.
Our Vital Records Office can help you replace or change the CRBA, or request more copies of it at any time.
By late 2023, we anticipate that the X gender marker will be available on Consular Reports of Birth Abroad (CRBAs). Please note we are currently offering customers the option to select an X gender maker on a U.S. passport.
If you acquired U.S. nationality when you were born in one of the current or former territories of the United States during the relevant time periods below, you are not eligible for a CRBA because you are not considered to have been born abroad.
When applying for a U.S. passport, you may establish acquisition of U.S. nationality by submitting a birth certificate issued from the local vital records office along with other evidence required to establish acquisition of U.S. nationality. The locations and time periods include:
