Report of Birth

[jsnearline 2]

I'm an American citizen and my wife is a citizen of the Philippines. We're wondering whether we should file a Report of Birth with the consulate for our son. He already has a US passport. Are there any advantages/disadvantages to filing a Report of Birth for him?

[payxibka 10,045]

I'm an American citizen and my wife is a citizen of the Philippines. We're wondering whether we should file a Report of Birth with the consulate for our son. He already has a US passport. Are there any advantages/disadvantages to filing a Report of Birth for him?

report the birth to whom? Where was the child born?

[jsnearline 2]

Report the birth to the embassy or consulate of the Philippines. The child was born here in the US.

The only advantage I can think of is that my son might be eligible for dual citizenship.

[happywifeymom 4]

Report the birth to the embassy or consulate of the Philippines. The child was born here in the US.

The only advantage I can think of is that my son might be eligible for dual citizenship.

If the cild has his US passport that means he is a US citizen and no need to report his birth.

If the mom is a Philippine citizen by the time the child was born,, that child can get a Philippine passport which makes him dual citizen. My son has dual citizenship though he was born in the Philippines.

Edited May 14, 2009 by happywifeymom

[Michael and Milahjean 0]

We've just completed the Report of Birth for our daughter born July 1 2008. If either parent is Filipino when the child is born outside the Philippines, the Philippine citizen parent should report the birth. The child can become a dual citizen if born in the US, but the Report of Birth must be initiated and completed via your Philippine Consulate (our's is Chicago). The advantage we see is that our daughter can apply for a Philippine passport which will avoid the 21 day limit on extended future visits to the Philippines, she can vote when she reaches age, and can own property with no restrictions. We received the signed and stamped return forms from the Chicago consulate last Saturday. Copies of this are sent to Manila and kept on file at the local Philippine consulate, so we figure in a few months there will probably be an official NSO birth certificate, which may be needed for Philippine passport application.

Scan your local Philippine consulate website for the Report of Birth info and form to fill up. The cost is only $25 US and is painless if completed during the first year following birth.

Good luck!!

M&M

[jsnearline 2]

Thanks for the info. In our case we just found out about this and our son is 16 months old already. There is an affidavit to file in addition to the report because we're past 30 days since the date of birth. Is not knowing about the option to file Report of Birth an acceptable reason for the late filing?

What evidence did you send of the parent's Filipino citizenship?

[jsnearline 2]

The advantage we see is that our daughter can apply for a Philippine passport which will avoid the 21 day limit on extended future visits to the Philippines,..

This is partially true. However, if a foreign born child and/or spouse accompanies the Filipino parent or spouse, the 21 day rule doesn't apply. Instead, they are allowed visa free entry for a period of one year provided they have a roundtrip ticket.

[Michael and Milahjean 0]

Thanks for the info. In our case we just found out about this and our son is 16 months old already. There is an affidavit to file in addition to the report because we're past 30 days since the date of birth. Is not knowing about the option to file Report of Birth an acceptable reason for the late filing?

What evidence did you send of the parent's Filipino citizenship?

Yes, I would guess that not being aware of this is a reasonable explanation. We just learned about this here about a month ago and looked into it, just in time.

We sent the docs listed in the requirements - original certified BC of child (which was returned) and 3 copies, 3 copies of asawa's Philippine passport (just the pages with the photo), 3 copies of our NSO marriage certificate (married in Phils), and the original and 3 copies of the Report of Birth form - signed by 2 witnesses - does not need to be notarized. We also sent a cover letter, the Certified Cashier check and the prepaid return envelope with $1 postage applied. I sent it flat-rate priority mail with delivery confirmation.

It took about 2 weeks to receive the stamped paperwork back from the consulate.

M&M

[jsnearline 2]

[We sent the docs listed in the requirements - original certified BC of child (which was returned) and 3 copies, 3 copies of asawa's Philippine passport (just the pages with the photo), 3 copies of our NSO marriage certificate (married in Phils), and the original and 3 copies of the Report of Birth form - signed by 2 witnesses - does not need to be notarized. We also sent a cover letter, the Certified Cashier check and the prepaid return envelope with $1 postage applied. I sent it flat-rate priority mail with delivery confirmation.

Did you have to send the original Philippine passport with the application, or did you just get the copies notarized?

[Michael and Milahjean 0]

[We sent the docs listed in the requirements - original certified BC of child (which was returned) and 3 copies, 3 copies of asawa's Philippine passport (just the pages with the photo), 3 copies of our NSO marriage certificate (married in Phils), and the original and 3 copies of the Report of Birth form - signed by 2 witnesses - does not need to be notarized. We also sent a cover letter, the Certified Cashier check and the prepaid return envelope with $1 postage applied. I sent it flat-rate priority mail with delivery confirmation.

Did you have to send the original Philippine passport with the application, or did you just get the copies notarized?

Nothing special was needed. Just ordinary B&W photocopies with the passport flipped open to the picture and data info, not certified at all. The only certified document needed was the child birth certificate, and that was returned to us. (Those darned tihings are $15 per certified copy from our local clerk, so I was glad to see it returned. We'd already surrendered one of the three certified BCs I ordered to USCIS for the Removal of Conditions petition.) When I photocopied the BC there were several black VOID splotches all over it on a diagonal, but they were apparently accepted. I guess you get that when a photocopy is made, but can't see the VOIDs in natural light. I just set the copier to the lightest setting to make the photocopies so the text was still readable and the VOIDs were as light as possible.