Our story: CRBA for our child denied, entering the US with a baby transportation letter and Citizenship through the CCA

[BCN_CAL 0]

On 5/21/2013 at 8:20 AM, Mark88 said:

My wife and I went through a great ordeal getting our child citizenship and in the end it worked out. Since I had numerous questions I couldn't find an answer to in our situation, we decided to write our experience and hope this will help others. Here are the questions and major issues we encountered:

• Why and how our Child Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) was denied at the US Consulate
• How our child was legally able to enter the US with a baby transportation letter, receives a green card and the process at the airport.
• Receiving US Citizenship under the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 and a US Passport
• Applying for a Social Security Number using the new US Passport but without a US birth certificate, and finally
• Did our child loose her foreign citizenship through be becoming a US Citizen
• Still deciding to file N-600 with USCIS

---But first, our Background:--

I'm a US Citizen by birth (you can be a naturalized citizen, too. This will not make a difference for the further process) and my wife is a foreign national with a 10 year unconditional green card. We went abroad while she was pregnant to visit her family. While being there, my wife had complications and was hospitalized for a couple days. Because of this, the doctors advised against traveling for her, since the risk was too big of loosing the baby. This is how a 10 day trip turned into 10 months. Since I'm a freelance programmer I had the luxury of conducting my business from abroad and it wasn't a big deal for us. We decided to play it safe and stay. Everything went well and our child was born healthy and without any further complications. We decided to stay a couple of weeks longer so my wife could recover from child birth related injuries and not to put too much stress on the baby with an intercontinental flight.

--Child Report of Birth Abroad and it's denial--
This is when we decided to start a CRBA application with the local US Consulate. We wanted to get US Citizenship for our child and a US Passport to return home. We did start this process two weeks after she was born, since we figured it would take some time to process. But we weren't prepared for this. To be able to transfer your citizenship your child, you have to

• be a US Citizen
• spent at least 5 years in the US, 2 of which have to be after your 14 birthday
• The child has to be under 18

If the child was born out of wedlock or the US Citizen parent is deceased, or this is for an adopted child there are more restrictions or a total different process. For further information please on the CRBA or the issues mentioned before, please go to your local US Embassy website since our experience is for a biological child born in wedlock.

The CRBA process is also described in numerous forums, so I will keep it short: I had to prove my physical presence in the US. I did spend a lot of time as a child and teenager abroad through my parents work. I brought school records, doctors bills, pay stubs from my parents while employed in the US, business documents of my company, tax returns, my wives green card process which was done in the US(!) - but - all this and much more wasn't enough to satisfy the consular officer. We were dumbstruck by how we were treated and that the amount of evidence didn't accumulate to 5+ years (for them). Our application was denied! If you do this process, be sure to show them at least 10+ years of evidence, since they bump off a certain amount of months for each year.
So what now? My wife and I, legally allowed to live and work in the US, and our 8 week old daughter should stay behind??? I thought I couldn't be the only one in this situation, but after going through google and visa forums I kind of had the feeling we were. But I did find this:

--Greencard for my daughter through my wife--
Ok, so it does happen a lot. People, intentionaly or not, are green card holders and have their children abroad. As described above, in our case this was due to a medical condition. So what now? I did some research and finally contacted Customs And Border Protections (CBP) foreign office at the Embassy. I was lucky to get a quick and competent answer:

• If you are the MOTHER and a green card holder AND
• you have been less than a year abroad (!!! really important !!!)
• and you are taking your baby on the first trip back to the US (!!! also very important, if out of any reason you - the green card holder - already traveled to the US once without your child, this what comes next won't work !!!)

The Embassy/US Consulate issues you a baby transportation letter (it's actually a visa in your baby's foreign passport), also known as "NA-3 (BABY)". We went to the consulate, got the baby transportation letter (took about two hours and can be done on the same day you contact them) and booked a flight for the next week. That was it, and the best part is: Our child AUTOMATICALLY receives a green card upon entering the US. No fees, no wait, no application with USCIS while outside, just automatic. Anyone who dealt with USCIS before knows, things can't be that simple, but in this case its pretty straight forward.

For more information on the Baby Transportation Letter follow this link: http://imgur.com/srhWSt5
To see what a baby transportation letter looks like, click here: http://imgur.com/idQUeWC

Now if you are more than a year abroad, you will basically have to go through the entire green card process for yourself AND your child again. So if you are 360 days outside the US, and you can fly, BUY A TICKET, GET THE TRANSPORTATION LETTER AND GET ON THE PLANE ASAP. Otherwise you might spend weeks, months or even years until you get back and receive another approved green card (+ the $1000's in fees the application will cost you, again). I don't know how DHS determines how long you've been outside for more then a year, but IMHO it's not worth the risk and small children do pretty good on a flight.
Also the transportation letter is confirmation of you being in legal status. So if you're cutting time close, this letter will also be proof that you are eligible to return to the US.



 

Dear Mark 88,

 

Hi,

 

I have almost similar situation like you, but FATHER is green card holder and MOTHER is the US citizen.

We went to US consulate in Barcelona and they told us because we can not prove that my wife has lived in the US for 5 years after 14, we can not get US passport for my baby. 

 

In this case that the Mother is US citizen and father is green cardholder, can I apply for letter of transportation? because you said that only mother can apply?!

 

The other issue is that for my job interview as university professor I traveled to US three weeks after my baby born !!!??? Obviously mother and baby have been stayed in Spain since the baby born and if they allow us it will be a first trip of mother and baby to the US. 

 

I would appreciate your help in advance!

 

If we can not go to the US, I have to forget about my job!

 

Best regards,

 

BCN_CAL

[Mark88 184]

36 minutes ago, BCN_CAL said:

In this case that the Mother is US citizen and father is green cardholder, can I apply for letter of transportation? because you said that only mother can apply?!

It has changed, and just one parent (doesn't matter if father or mother who is a LPR) can apply for a BTL.

 

The other issue is that for my job interview as university professor I traveled to US three weeks after my baby born !!!??? Obviously mother and baby have been stayed in Spain since the baby born and if they allow us it will be a first trip of mother and baby to the US.

 

If you (the green card holder) travelled to the US without the child, I am sorry to say, that was it. The rules say it must be on the first trip back to US and you must accomodate the child.

You will have to take the regular greencard route. You might be able to expedite the process for the green card, but expect it to be 6-12 months since Spain does not offer DCF.

[za3bour 2]

Thanks for helping out.

 

My wife is an american citizen, we immigrated to the USA few months back. When we submitted the passport request for our two daughters they asked my wife to proof that she has been living in the USA for 5 years etc. (which she didn't that's why we didn't apply for their passports overseas). What can we do now? YOu would expect whoever is handling the passports to know the child act of 2000...

[Mark88 184]

14 hours ago, za3bour said:

Thanks for helping out.

 

My wife is an american citizen, we immigrated to the USA few months back. When we submitted the passport request for our two daughters they asked my wife to proof that she has been living in the USA for 5 years etc. (which she didn't that's why we didn't apply for their passports overseas). What can we do now? YOu would expect whoever is handling the passports to know the child act of 2000...

In which status/with which visa did the children enter the US? Did you go to a passport office or the DOS passport agency?

[za3bour 2]

1 minute ago, Mark88 said:

In which status/with which visa did the children enter the US? Did you go to a passport office or the DOS passport agency?

In California, we went to the county office here in Santa Cruz we thought it will be better than the post office. 

[Mark88 184]

2 minutes ago, za3bour said:

In California, we went to the county office here in Santa Cruz we thought it will be better than the post office. 

And with which visa did the children enter the US?

[za3bour 2]

Just now, Mark88 said:

And with which visa did the children enter the US?

Immigrant visa. 

[Mark88 184]

1 minute ago, za3bour said:

Immigrant visa. 

Do they have CRBA denial letter? Were you asked for it?

[za3bour 2]

Just now, za3bour said:

Immigrant visa. 

We have green cards which we submitted with all the papers. They are in school already. We have all the requirements for the child act of 2000.my only worry is that we are originally from Syria. There is no law that prevent the kids from being American though. We will call them today and see. Thanks 

[za3bour 2]

Just now, Mark88 said:

Do they have CRBA denial letter? Were you asked for it?

Not a denial. They submitted a form to prove that my wife lived in US before she was 18 which she didn't (only until 5).

 

That's actually while we immigrated because at the us embassy they refused to give the kids a US Passport. 

 

 

[Mark88 184]

2 minutes ago, za3bour said:

We have green cards which we submitted with all the papers. They are in school already. We have all the requirements for the child act of 2000.my only worry is that we are originally from Syria. There is no law that prevent the kids from being American though. We will call them today and see. Thanks 

If you don't have a CRBA denial letter that might be the issue with them. It doesn't matter where you are from, the law is the same for every nationality. Usually an immigrant visa only can be issued, if there is denial of CRBA. However if they give you problems, just head to the DOS passport agency in San Francisco.

[za3bour 2]

Just now, Mark88 said:

If you don't have a CRBA denial letter that might be the issue with them. It doesn't matter where you are from, the law is the same for every nationality. Usually an immigrant visa only can be issued, if there is denial of CRBA. However if they give you problems, just head to the DOS passport agency in San Francisco.

Thank you. We will call and see. It's their rights to be citizens so we will not give up at all we will go all the way. 

[Mark88 184]

Just now, za3bour said:

Thank you. We will call and see. It's their rights to be citizens so we will not give up at all we will go all the way. 

 

You are looking at it the wrong way and might be overbearing on the situation: No one is denying them the right to be citizens, since they are ALREADY citizens. If they fulfill the the requirements, the CCA already made them that. You do NOT need a passport to be a citizen (over half of all Americans don't even own a passport). A passport will make it ofcourse easier proving USC. If they give you a hard time in Santa Cruz, just srew them and go to the DOS passport agency in San Francisco.

[za3bour 2]

1 minute ago, Mark88 said:

 

You are looking at it the wrong way and might be overbearing on the situation: No one is denying them the right to be citizens, since they are ALREADY citizens. If they fulfill the the requirements, the CCA already made them that. You do NOT need a passport to be a citizen (over half of all Americans don't even own a passport). A passport will make it ofcourse easier proving USC. If they give you a hard time in Santa Cruz, just srew them and go to the DOS passport agency in San Francisco.

We received the letter from Virginia. The office here were helpful and sent the papers by email. I agree with you that they are already citizens but it seems whoever sent us the letter disagree because he is asking us to prove something that is not required to start with. 

Just now, za3bour said:

We received the letter from Virginia. The office here were helpful and sent the papers by email. I agree with you that they are already citizens but it seems whoever sent us the letter disagree because he is asking us to prove something that is not required to start with. 

And the money we paid is not refundable 

[Mark88 184]

What kind of letter do you mean? As you can read from my first post in this thread we were required to have the CRBA denied inorder to even file for the green card. Don't you have this CRBA denial letter?