Welcoming a child into your family is a beautiful experience. Naturally, you will want to integrate the child into your everyday life as soon as possible, including traveling with them. But before crossing borders with your child, you must ensure they have the proper travel documentation. We look at what you need to apply for a passport for an adopted child.
How to Get a Passport For an Adopted Child?
Everyone entering and leaving the U.S. from foreign countries must have a valid passport, and the same applies to your child. Thus, the sooner you can get a valid passport for an adopted child, the sooner you can make memories with them or even bring them to the U.S.
However, getting a passport for an adopted child depends on many things:
- Whether the child was born in the U.S.,
- Whether the adoptive parents are present, and
- Whether the child has applied for a passport before.
Understanding how these factors affect getting a passport for an adopted child will ease your journey significantly. Below are the steps you should take:
- Contact the nearest passport facility: Every new passport applicant must verify their identity at the local acceptance facility. Contacting the closest one allows you to get a breakdown of the documents required for passport of adopted child and enables you to book an appointment. TVP can help you with this.
- Fill out form DS-11: This form is the standard for any passport for an adopted child. It is available online on the U.S. Department of State website, and we also offer it on our website. You must include all the details but should not sign it until you have verified the child’s identity at the local acceptance agent. Once the agent has reviewed the application forms, you will sign the DS-11 in their presence so they can seal the application documents for processing at the state passport office.
- Include a written statement: If your adopted child does not have a Social Security Number, you must inform the state passport office by writing down the following statement: “I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America that the following is true and correct: (the full name of your adopted child, e.g., Mary Brown) has never been issued a Social Security Number by the Social Security Administration.” You must date and sign the document and attach it to your passport application documents.
- Prepare the parental relationship documents: You must have documents showing you are the child’s legal guardian or parent. Ideally, this should be an adoption decree. But where the adoption is not final, you can present supporting documentation that shows the adoption is underway.
- Present the child’s birth records: A U.S.-born child should have documents like a U.S. birth certificate. But one born outside the U.S. can have a citizenship or birth certificate.
- Attach your ID: The acceptance agent will require parents to submit a valid ID. Examples include a valid passport book or card, a valid in-state driver’s license, and a U.S. Permanent Residence Card.
- Show your consent: Both parents or guardians of the child must be present in person when applying for a passport for an adopted child. But where this is not possible, additional documentation will be necessary. For example, where one parent cannot be present, they should date and sign form DS-3053, which shows they agree to the passport application.
- Add the child’s passport photos: The child must have two recent passport photos that align with the U.S. passport photo guidelines.
- Show up at the local acceptance agency: When you book an appointment, you will get a date to present the passport application documents. The agent will review the documents and allow you to sign them if they meet all the requirements.
- Pay the required fees: You must pay the application fees for a passport for an adopted child, after which you can finalize the process and await the passport.
Note that the steps to get a passport for an adopted child vary based on whether the child has been born in the U.S. or adopted from another country, as detailed later in this guide.
Documents Required for Passport of Adopted Child
Getting a passport for an adopted child allows you to travel with them in and out of the U.S. without much hassle. But doing so often involves different legal processes than you would follow when applying for a non-adoptive child. As such, you may ask, “What documents do I need for a passport for an adopted child?” The documents vary based on whether the child was born in the U.S. or abroad, if their adoption is final, and whether you got the amended birth certificate within a year of their birth. At the bare minimum, you need the following documents to process a passport for an adopted child:
- A valid government-issued ID,
- Two passport photos of the child taken in the last six months,
- Proof of parental relationship, e.g., an adoption decree or amended birth certificate, and
- Proof of the child’s U.S. citizenship and identification.
However, the requirements for a passport for an adopted child have other considerations, as explained below.
Getting a Passport For An Adopted Child Born in the U.S.
If your child was born in the U.S., the document requirements will differ from those of a passport for an adopted child born abroad. In this case of a U.S.-born child, you must present proof that the child was born in the U.S., a document that shows your parental relationship, e.g., the adoption decree, a valid ID such as a driver’s license, and parental consent. In the latter case, both parents showing up serves as consent. But if one parent is unavailable, the available parent should submit proof of the absent parent’s consent or the present parent’s sole custody. Additionally, the documents required for passport of adopted child born in the U.S. depend on whether the adoption has been finalized as follows:
1. If The Adoption is Final
When you adopt a child, you get their amended birth certificate, which lists you as the child’s legal parent. Usually, this document is acceptable as proof of parental relationship and the child’s U.S. citizenship. However, this only applies if you get the amended birth certificate within a year of the child’s birth. If you get it a year after the child is born, it is a delayed birth certificate. While it is still proof of the child’s citizenship and your parental relationship, you must present it alongside the original birth certificate, which lists the child’s biological parents or the adoption decree.
The local acceptance agent will expect you to present the following documents to get a passport for an adopted child:
- A certified copy of your child’s birth certificate,
- A certified copy of the adoption decree (depending on the state and whether an amended birth certificate is available),
- A valid government-issued ID, e.g., a valid passport card, and
- Two recent passport photos of the child taken in the last six months.
The adoption decree will only be necessary if you got the amended birth certificate a year after the child’s birth. In this case, you may also need to include documents showing the child’s name before the adoption, where you might need to add the child’s original birth certificate.
2. If The Adoption is Underway
The good news is that you can apply for a passport for an adopted child born in the U.S. before finalizing the adoption process. Here is how to get a passport for an adopted child:
- A relinquishment document: You must prove the adoption is legal by showing the child was up for adoption,
- A certified copy of the child’s birth certificate,
- A certified copy of the adoption petition in the adoption court: It should have been filed and should be pending in a state court,
- A valid government-issued ID, e.g., a passport book,
- An affidavit of travel authorization signed by the birth mother: While this is optional, it cements your passport application by proving that the birth mother or adoption agency has consented to the passport application, and
- Two recent passport photos of the child taken in the last six months.
You will get a passport for an adopted child issued under the child’s adoptive name. Once the adoption has been finalized, you can travel with the child outside the U.S. Sometimes, parents can travel with their children before the finalization, but this requires authorization from the court and adoption agency/ child’s birth mother.
Passport For a Child Adopted From Abroad
Can you get a passport for an adopted child born abroad? Yes! There are two ways to go about this, as it depends on whether the child has U.S. citizenship:
1. If the Child is a Registered U.S. Citizen
Once you adopt a child and register their adoption, they become a U.S. citizen, allowing them to get a U.S. passport for an adopted child. The registration process through the Citizenship and Immigration Services requires you to present a visa showing how the child entered the U.S. A child whose adoption was finalized outside the U.S. gets an IR-3 or IH-3 visa, which also grants them a certificate of citizenship before they arrive in the U.S. However, a child whose adoption is finalized in the U.S. gets an IR-4 or IH-4 visa, and you must thus apply for a certificate of citizenship once they are in the U.S. Once you have finalized the registration, you can process a passport for an adopted child by presenting the documents below:
- An adoption decree,
- A certificate of citizenship: While your child will have a foreign birth certificate, you can register the adoption to get this certificate, which bestows U.S. citizenship on them,
- A valid government-issued ID, and
- Two passport photos of the child taken in the last six months.
The passport for an adopted child will feature their adoptive name and will be valid for five years like any other child’s passport.
2. If the Child Is Not a Registered U.S. Citizen
You can adopt a child abroad and bring them to the U.S. before applying for their U.S. citizenship. In such a case, you need the following documents to get a passport for an adopted child:
- A certified copy of the adoption decree,
- The child’s foreign passport or Permanent Resident Card,
- A valid government-issued ID, and
- Two passport photos of the child taken in the last six months.
Like in all other applications, the parents must be present during the application process or should provide written and notarized consent okaying the application. The rest of the requirements for how to get a passport for an adopted child are the same as those of a child born in the U.S.
What Is the Cost of a Passport For an Adopted Child?
The cost of a passport for an adopted child depends on the following:
- If the child needs a passport book, passport card, or both: Passport books and cards incur different costs. It’s advisable to opt for a book when getting a passport for an adopted child, and you wish to travel internationally.
- If the documents need apostilles and translations: Foreign-issued documents may require professional translations, apostilles, and legalizations to be valid in the U.S., e.g., a foreign adoption decree.
- The processing timeline: The time taken to process a passport for an adopted child is subject to backlogs at the state passport office. You can always shorten the time to days by using TVP’s expedited processing, which has varying timelines from days to weeks. You can calculate the applicable cost for a passport for an adopted child through our website.
See? Getting a passport for an adopted child can be fast and straightforward! Apply for one today!
