New U.S. Passport Rule for Valid Birth Certificate Effective April 1, 2011

As of April 1, 2011, the U.S. Department of State requires the full names of the applicant’s parent(s) to be listed on all certified birth certificates to be considered as primary evidence of U.S. citizenship for all passport applicants, regardless of age. Certified birth certificates missing this information are no longer acceptable as evidence of citizenship. This is called the long form birth certificate.

Question?

So what if both parents are not known such as a single mom who did not name the father on a birth certificate or an adopted child whose birth parents wish to remain anonymous?

A USA Today Travel Article posted April 6th provides an official answer from a State Department spokeswoman who e-mailed:

“The Department recognizes that some passport applicants will not have two parents registered on their birth certificates due to circumstances such as an unknown father or a single-parent adoption case. In these cases, a passport applicant may submit a certified copy of a birth certificate listing the complete name of the registering parent. Regarding two parents adopting a child, the parents may amend the birth certificate of their child to reflect both of their complete names. Though requirements differ slightly across the country, states generally make it easy to amend a birth certificate to list adoptive parents. In adoption cases, the Department will also accept the certified copy of the child’s original birth certificate as long as it is submitted with the certified copy of the adoption decree indicating the name of the child and his or her adoptive parents.”

A birth certificate is required for a first time passport applicant, for anyone who has lost their passport and anyone under 16 years old. Full application procedures can be found on the FastPassport checklist