Applying for a Consular Report of Birth Abroad

If you are a U.S. citizen and the parent of a child born out of the United States, you will need to document your child’s citizenship with a Consular Report of Birth. This document is used in the United States like a certified copy of a birth certificate, and it is acceptable evidence of citizenship for obtaining a passport and entering school.
A scheduled appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa is required to apply for a Consular Report of Birth Abroad. You may schedule an appointment using the information at the bottom of this page. We strongly recommend that you complete the application forms and gather all required supporting documentation prior to scheduling an appointment to avoid unnecessary delays in your case.

Application Forms
You will use the same application form (the DS-2029) no matter where you apply for the "Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA)."

Supporting Documents
You will need all of the following:
1. The child’s foreign birth certificate.
2. Proof of citizenship of the U.S. citizen parent(s). A current passport is the preferred form of proof, but a U.S. birth certificate or naturalization certificate is also acceptable.
3. Proof of the relationship between the U.S. citizen parent(s) and the child. Your child’s birth certificate with both parents’ names on it is the best form of proof.
4. Proof of the current marriage between the child’s parents, if married. If there are any prior marriages, we need to see proof of how those marriages ended.
5. A statement from either U.S. citizen parent and evidence that they lived in the U.S. long enough to transmit citizenship to their child. The statement you give is called an Affidavit of Parentage, Physical Presence, and Support.
6. One photocopy of all submitted documents.

For the complete checklist please click here:(PDF 190 KB) 

How much physical presence is required? This will depend on whether the parents are married, and whether one or both is a U.S. citizen. Learn more about transmitting citizenship here. 

How you prove you were physically present will depend a lot on your situation. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. Some examples of acceptable evidence include school transcripts, old passports, income tax returns, utility bills in the name of the parent, employment records, military records, and or medical records. The more you can provide, the easier it will be for the consular officer to approve the CRBA.

Fees
The current fee is USD $100.00

Schedule an Appointment

Once you have completed the application and gathered all of the required supporting evidence, schedule an appointment at: http://evisaforms.state.gov/ACSSchedulingSystem.asp.

You may cancel or change your scheduled appointment in advance if necessary by accessing the scheduling calendar. Applicants who fail to appear for a scheduled appointment must schedule a new appointment before submitting an application for a Consular Report of Birth Abroad.

Only one parent need initially appear at the scheduled Consular Report of Birth Abroad appointment to submit the required documentation and application forms. The forms will then be reviewed. Once determined to be complete, both parents and the child applicant must then appear in person to review their application directly with a Consular Officer, generally the following day. If the documents and forms submitted are found to be incomplete, the parent(s) will be required to return with completed documentation before an interview with a Consular Officer can take place. If one parent is unable to attend the interview with the Consular Officer, s/he must submit notarized application forms with the attending parent and provide complete contact information.

If the Consular Report of Birth Abroad is approved at the time of the appointment, the parents may also apply for a U.S. passport and U.S. social security number at that time. See the information on applying for a U.S. passport here . The current fee for a child’s passport application is USD $ 105.00