U.S. Embassy London CRBA and Passport Experience and Walkthrough

[milkywaynick 7]

Here is my experience and a guide you can reference for your visit at the U.S. London Embassy for applying for Consular Report of Birth Abroad and Child's First U.S. Passport.

 

First things first! Breathe. I appreciate this can be a highly stressful and daunting time with uncertainties given the current state of the world with COVID-19 and limited appointments. I want to break down the process from start to finish.

 

So, you have determined and confirmed that your child has entitlement to United States Citizenship by birth abroad and you are wondering what are the next steps in the process and what does the interview feel like.

 

The first thing to remember is to remain calm and level-headed. There are a lot of documents to fill out and maintain so you must be able to relax and do things one at a time with full confidence in the process. Finish one thing, review it and read it carefully and then go on to the next. I cannot stress this enough as stress can cause doubt and confusion. You need to be confident that you have followed the process in its entirety to help with the much needed assurance.

 

• Step 1 - Print out the CRBA-Checklist to follow along for completion of the following:
  • From DS-2029 - Application for Consular Report of Birth Abroad
    • If your child has a claim to U.S. Citizenship, s/he must enter the United States on a valid U.S. Passport. No ifs, ands, or buts. Your child is a U.S. Citizen by birthright given you meet the requirements for transferring your citizenship to them (these requirements will be mentioned in this guide). Bring 3 copies.
  • Form DS-11 - Application for a U.S. Passport
    • This can either be done by writing and filling it out with black pen and BLOCK CAPITALS. However, my recommendation is to complete this form by visiting https://pptform.state.gov/ - this is the online version and it much more legible and amendable without wasting paper should any mistakes be made. Please remember, when filling this form out online, you must make absolute sure that you fill out everything correctly. Once you complete this form online, you will be sent to a page to generate the completed version from your form you have just filled in and if it is wrong you will have to restart it from the beginning. So, please take your time to get it right and accurate. Bring 3 copies.
  • Form SS-5 - Application for a Social Security Number/ Card
    • This can be completed online and is very simple.
    • Type everything in BLOCK CAPITALS
    • If your foreign spouse does not have a social security number then leave it blank as this will not apply for them as they are not a United States Citizen. However, do fill in their name. Bring 3 copies.
    • If you do not have a Social Security Number, you must submit a statement, signed and dated, that includes the phrase, “I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America that the following is true and correct: I have never been issued a Social Security number by the Social Security Administration.”
      • Please make this professional by including the letterhead for the U.S. Embassy and signing your name at the bottom of the declaration. Bring 3 copies.
  • Child’s U.K. birth certificate
    • Please bring the LONG version. The long version is the version that has both parent's names on the document. The short form does not have both names of both parents. It is important that you bring the original along with 3 copies. 
  • Marriage Certificate
    • Bring your ORIGINAL marriage certificate along with 3 copies.
      • If your marriage certificate is in a foreign language and does not include a translation on the ORIGINAL document then you must get the document translated and notarized. The U.S. Embassy will not accept foreign language documents without the translation. If your marriage document does include translation (such as a key to explain what words means what) then this is acceptable. If it comes front and back, you can photocopy it front and back (3 copies) and this suffices.
  • Divorce or Death Certificates
    • This is for any previous marriage(s) that you may have had. you must bring each original certificate with 3 copies
  • Evidence of parent(s) U.S. citizenship 
    • The U.S. citizen parent(s) must present his/her U.S. passport. If the U.S. citizen parent(s) was naturalized, the original Certificate of Naturalization or citizenship should also be presented. Please bring the original and 3 photocopies of the biographical page of the passport(s)
  • Proof of Physical Presence in the United States of the U.S. citizen parent(s)
    •  The U.S. citizen parent(s) will be asked to present proof of their physical presence in the United States. Good examples include, school records, college transcripts; previous U.S. passports with entry/exit stamps for the U.S. Please review the U.S. London Embassy website for specific physical presence requirements for transmission of citizenship to ensure you are bringing sufficient evidence to demonstrate the length of presence in the U.S. required for your circumstances.
      • You must provide precise dates of your movements. I understand this can be difficult because how do you know when you moved if you have moved a lot in the past? Well, focus on the easy things you prove! School records, college transcripts, immunization records, expired passports. In the sections, when you are demonstrating how you meet the physical presence, you can use your school records as a guide to evidence your movements and physical presence. Stick with the dates in a logical fashion as it appears on your documentation as this is the evidence! Following documented dates will ensure everything adds up. Contact your school districts and colleges in advance to request school records via e-mail. There are some hoops to go through because it is sensitive information. However, this investment is extremely valuable. In my case, I contacted my college and asked them the process, contacted one of my independent school districts and my local Health and Human Resources department for my immunization records and I was able to get all of them in one day. However, I got extremely lucky with this as processing times vary, so begin early in the week to give time for responses. Also, there are various turnaround times, so please do plan in advance!
  • Passport/Identification Document for Non-U.S. citizen parent
    • The non-U.S. citizen parent (your souse or partner/ former partner) must present his/her foreign passport or other government issued photo identification. Bring the original and 3 photocopies of the biographical page of the document
  • Child’s UK or other foreign passport
    • If your child has a UK or a foreign passport (expired or not) bring it and additionally 3 photo copies of the biographical page
  • Passport Photograph: One passport sized (2” x 2”) photograph
    • Ensure your photo meets the requirements. The U.S. Embassy does have photo booths inside should you need to take some there. There is naturally a fee, but it can be a time/ money saver should something not go as planned. My recommendation is to get the photos done at a shop that specializes in these photos as they understand the requirements and will correct anything in the first instance should something need to be corrected.
    • Bring a back up photo in case and also bring a long enough stapler in case you need to staple it on one of your back of forms (can you see why 3 copies are necessary now?)
  • Application Fees
    • You can view generic information the fees by visiting here
      • Fees may vary as there are processing fees, DXC mailing fees if you have not purchased a return envelope, one can be bought at the U.S. Embassy during the time of your interview. Bring enough money for each of your applications
  • How Payments are Made
    • Payments can be made with either a credit or a debit card. However, this can be tricky! I was charged for the services in U.S. Dollar amount. When they ran my debit card, it came be as declined. Now, the lady mentioned that this was common due to banking requirements, etc. Remember, you are paying the United States Department of State which take payments in the form of U.S. Dollars. I bank with Barclays which allows for a U.S. Travelers Wallet and I moved the asking amount from my current account to my U.S. Travelers Wallet. It converted the amount to dollars as I was moving the money so I could add the correct amount. She ran my card again and it worked! (A sigh of relief on both our faces). Now, I appreciate that there are many different banking institutions. So, please enquire with your banking institution beforehand about making payments to such entities and institutions like the U.S. Embassy beforehand so you do not get suck while you are there. The U.S. Embassy does not take any form of cash in person. Neither do they accept travelers checks nor personal checks. Please understand the requirements of IN PERSON VISITING to ensure you are following the appropriate method. 
• Step 2 - Preparing for Your Appointment  - View the Link and Ensure you Follow this and do not bring what you do not need to bring!
• Step 3 - Attending Your Appointment
  • When you arrive at the U.S. Embassy in London you will most likely queue in front of the American Citizens Service Entrance which is guarded by armed law enforcement (you know... Good Ole Fashioned 'Murica)
  • You will be met by an officer who is responsible for checking people in with their appointments. S/he will ask to see your passports (U.S. Citizen and their attending spouse) and he will ask on who's behalf you are attending. You need to reply, 'the child'. S/he will then confirm your appoint and time and ask if you have any laptops, non-permitted items (weapons, etc) in your bags (simple backpacks, not suitcases as they don't allow these). Following this check, they will ask to see home screen of your phone and will ask you to open an app. Now, I am not sure why this is asked but I can only suppose it is due to any type of espionage activity that could happen and they may be using special technology to detect this.
  • After this, you will be invited in and it will be like going to an airport as they follow very similar procedures regarding bomb swabs, metal instruments, etc. Now, if you have a bottle of water of some sort, they will ask you to take a sip where they can see it. Now, I imagine this may be due to preventing some sort of chemical that's unwanted being brought in. So, yes, they make you drink it. Luckily, you decided to leave the poison at home! They may ask any other questions about the contents, i.e., for me they asked about the stapler and to pull it out and I did and showed them and they were happy with it.
  • Finally, you're let through into the U.S. Embassy and you will follow the signs for American Citizens Services and will most likely go to Floor 2 where all the magic happens.
• Step 4 - The Interview
  • Once, you're on Floor 2, an officer will tell you to queue at a particular gate to receive a ticket. You will queue, speak to the gentlemen and he will confirm the reason for visit and then provide you with a ticket. Mine was C707. Others started with 'P'. I imagine the C was for CRBA and the P was for passport. Not entirely certain though. Nonetheless, things will kick into high gear as the embassy is fast paced and you will visit a number of the cubicles/ windows.  
  • Your attending officer will ask you for all of the above documents and you must give them to him/her. As they reference the document you must give them the document(s). I recommend having tabbed dividers of some sort to help you organize as I found myself fumbling through bits when he asked because I just had not tabbed my documentation. He was patient in spite of this but he was assertive in his requests. Once I handed him everything, included physical presence, Affidavits, marriage certificates, etc. He asked me if I had a return envelope and I replied no. I then asked if it was possible to purchase it there and he said yes. He then gave me a DXC return envelope form to fill and to have a seat and wait for my number to be recalled.
  • Once my number was recalled, I was recalled to cubicle 25 to make the payments for the documents (CRBA, Passport, etc). It did come with a couple of other charges, however, I am mind-dumping all of this and will try to provide these later. It wasn't astronomical but I also brought enough money to pay for a few applications. Here is when I found out I need to use my U.S. Travelers Wallet to pay. (Again, a travelers wallet is only a wallet within my banking app that allows me to convert GBP to USD and spend the money. This works well for buying items in USD from American websites, etc. If you have any questions about this I can try to answer to my best ability. However, I lucked out with this as I set this travelers wallet up completely randomly around a year ago and had not really used it until the day of the appointment when I had to pay the fees. Again, I am fortunate in this case. Please check with your banks about this before going to the embassy so that you are not disappointed.) Following the payment, I was told to take a seat again as my number would be called shortly.
  • The third time my number was called was to revisit the first cubicle, 36. Now, there was a discrepancy on my application. My daughter has a double-barrel shotgun surname. This is basically two surnames because of her mother's countries' requirements. In her mother's country, Spain, they require a child to have on their passport BOTH family names. The discrepancy was in the actual birth certificate as her birth certificate only had one name, which was my surname. The officer mentioned that this was a problem due to the application saying one thing and her birth certificate saying another. I then informed him that she has an expired Spanish passport and that it was a requirement on that passport, so I included it. He asked to see my daughter's expired passport, took it back to raise this with his line manager I believe, he then came back and said, 'Ok, if there is anything further needed, I'll call you back to the window."
    • Note: This did make me slightly nervous as I had spent a lot of time trying to get this right and I was worried that I had messed this part up and would have to go home empty handed and out of a lot of money. Remember, you do not get reimbursed for YOUR MISTAKES. So, PREPARE WELL!!
  • The fourth time I was called was to pay for the DXC. I made a couple mistakes on the form because I was nervous and there was a lot of noise due to the kids being around. However, the lady typed in the information, asked for payment (this was in GBP and not USD so travelers wallet not needed), and then asked me to confirm the mailing details were correct. I then verified them and she said it would be with me in four weeks. Yay! That's quicker than I thought. The fee was around 8 GBP. She then asked me to take a seat.
  • The fifth time I was called was in front of another cubicle (all cubicles were different) and asked to swear an oath that basically everything is true to the best of my knowledge, etc. He then asked me to sign to transmit my citizenship to my daughter. And then he asked me to name the mascot of my high school and I told him what they were. He then congratulated my daughter on becoming a U.S. Citizen by birthright (something along these lines) and wished us well.

 

This was my process and this was my experience. I am not sure how it works for others but I wanted to share what to expect so that you are confident in your journey and your own respective experience(s). Please note that I am not suggesting my method is best, I am only sharing my experience so please do what works for you as I cannot be responsible for outcomes. I did, however, wanted to give you a little insight into what it may feel like when you arrive. Best of luck.

Edited August 16, 2021 by MrFKDT
Change some words

[Modestmama 0]

Thank you so much. I’m trying to get an Appointment and it’s impossible!! How did you find an appointment? 

Edited October 3, 2021 by Modestmama

[milkywaynick 7]

10 hours ago, Modestmama said:

Thank you so much. I’m trying to get an Appointment and it’s impossible!! How did you find an appointment? 

I am in a forum on Facebook called "American Ex-Pats UK". They have resources and you can search the group for their WhatsApp group called "US Embassy Alerts" which help notify you when appointments become available. There is a window when appointments are released (usually on Wednesdays and Thursdays). I managed to book two appointments back to back following cancellations. To be honest, I was on the US website and clicking refresh and they came up. You have to keep trying that way. There is a lot of support and more tips available there. You will find an appointment, trust me. I was incredibly worried but kept at it and they came. 

[Modestmama 0]

4 hours ago, milkywaynick said:

I am in a forum on Facebook called "American Ex-Pats UK". They have resources and you can search the group for their WhatsApp group called "US Embassy Alerts" which help notify you when appointments become available. There is a window when appointments are released (usually on Wednesdays and Thursdays). I managed to book two appointments back to back following cancellations. To be honest, I was on the US website and clicking refresh and they came up. You have to keep trying that way. There is a lot of support and more tips available there. You will find an appointment, trust me. I was incredibly worried but kept at it and they came. 

Thank you so much! I have to apply for two kids, do I need two appointments? 

[milkywaynick 7]

6 minutes ago, Modestmama said:

Thank you so much! I have to apply for two kids, do I need two appointments? 

You're most welcomed. I'm happy to help. I'm unsure if you can get both children under one appointment due to when you arrange the appointment it is usually per child. If you can manage to get both children on the day then that would be ideal. In my case, I found two appointments on separate days. If you can manage to get the opening times and have someone help you may be able to do but my experience was one appointment then went home, found another appointment and then went back. I travelled to London twice to do it. Takes some work but it is all worth it. It may be worth going onto the group on Facebook as many have their separate experiences and might be able to help in other ways.

[Modestmama 0]

Thank you. I finally found the WhatsApp group. I’m a bit worried because my kids (under 5) have travelled to the USA with me in the past with their UK passports. 

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

28 minutes ago, Modestmama said:

. I’m a bit worried because my kids (under 5) have travelled to the USA with me in the past with their UK passports. 

They might tell you you weren’t supposed to do that, they might even sound annoyed about it, but there’s not really anything they can do - if your kids are citizens then they’re citizens, they can’t refuse a CRBA just because you had them travel on another passport.

[Modestmama 0]

On 10/4/2021 at 11:32 AM, milkywaynick said:

You're most welcomed. I'm happy to help. I'm unsure if you can get both children under one appointment due to when you arrange the appointment it is usually per child. If you can manage to get both children on the day then that would be ideal. In my case, I found two appointments on separate days. If you can manage to get the opening times and have someone help you may be able to do but my experience was one appointment then went home, found another appointment and then went back. I travelled to London twice to do it. Takes some work but it is all worth it. It may be worth going onto the group on Facebook as many have their separate experiences and might be able to help in other ways.

Just want to say thank you again for writing your post. I finally found an appointment because of that group and I pray everything goes smoothly. I’ll follow your steps 

[milkywaynick 7]

20 hours ago, Modestmama said:

Just want to say thank you again for writing your post. I finally found an appointment because of that group and I pray everything goes smoothly. I’ll follow your steps 

Congratulations!! I'm excited for you and your family. Any questions let me know! 

[milkywaynick 7]

On 10/11/2021 at 9:41 PM, Modestmama said:

Thank you. I finally found the WhatsApp group. I’m a bit worried because my kids (under 5) have travelled to the USA with me in the past with their UK passports. 

That should be okay. 

[Modestmama 0]

On 10/14/2021 at 6:46 AM, milkywaynick said:

That should be okay. 

Okay I'm stressing out. For the CRBA, I've read another experience and the officers asked questions or information that isn't included in the checklist or forms. So I need some clarification.

Do we need to include our time OUTSIDE of the USA on the CRBA application?

My supporting documents are 3 old USA passports, 2 bank statements (2 different banks), college transcript, high school diploma copy, previous teaching license, tax return from one year (only worked one year before moving), one dentist medical bill. Is this sufficient? Do they have to be notarized?

They need 3 copies of the same birth certificate? Long form, right?

[milkywaynick 7]

24 minutes ago, Modestmama said:

Okay I'm stressing out. For the CRBA, I've read another experience and the officers asked questions or information that isn't included in the checklist or forms. So I need some clarification.

Do we need to include our time OUTSIDE of the USA on the CRBA application?

My supporting documents are 3 old USA passports, 2 bank statements (2 different banks), college transcript, high school diploma copy, previous teaching license, tax return from one year (only worked one year before moving), one dentist medical bill. Is this sufficient? Do they have to be notarized?

They need 3 copies of the same birth certificate? Long form, right?

1. You need to include the time you have lived in the USA. You are basically demonstrating that you have been in America for over 5 years in a row before the age of 14. This is provable by elementary, middle school and high school transcripts. Also, immunization records can evidence this. You do not have to prove the time you have spent out of America, just the time you have been in America because you are transmitting your citizenship. For example, if a person was born in the US and moved at birth to a foreign country and had a child overseas then they would struggle to prove their physical presence in the US. I am not certain how strong a high school diploma is as it is a certificate and doesn't really evidence time spent. However, school records and immunization records do. I did not include time outside, only inside. You can bring your former passports if you like, I brought mine but didn't need to show it. Bring all the evidence you feel you need, better to have everything. 

 

2. None of my documents were notarized but I did get my transcripts and records directly from the state of Texas and my hometown health department. 

 

3. Bring original birth certificate and photocopy 2 more and you will have 3 copies. They'll ask you for the original and just give them all three. 

 

Any more questions just let me know. 

[Chancy 6,241]

On 10/18/2021 at 5:29 AM, milkywaynick said:

You are basically demonstrating that you have been in America for over 5 years in a row before the age of 14.

 

Not quite.  The requirement is the USC parent's physical presence in the US for 5 years prior to the child’s birth, at least 2 of which were after the age of 14.  Those 5 years do not have to be consecutive and all 5 years can be after age 14, as long as all were before the child's birth.  So college transcripts and US employment records are acceptable evidence. @Modestmama

 

Note that this is the general requirement for US physical presence, but there are actually different requirements depending on the circumstances of the child's birth -- https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/travel-legal-considerations/us-citizenship/Acquisition-US-Citizenship-Child-Born-Abroad.html

 

[Modestmama 0]

On 10/18/2021 at 11:34 PM, Chancy said:

 

Not quite.  The requirement is the USC parent's physical presence in the US for 5 years prior to the child’s birth, at least 2 of which were after the age of 14.  Those 5 years do not have to be consecutive and all 5 years can be after age 14, as long as all were before the child's birth.  So college transcripts and US employment records are acceptable evidence. @Modestmama

 

Note that this is the general requirement for US physical presence, but there are actually different requirements depending on the circumstances of the child's birth -- https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/travel-legal-considerations/us-citizenship/Acquisition-US-Citizenship-Child-Born-Abroad.html

 

Thank you! 

[milkywaynick 7]

 

On 10/18/2021 at 11:34 PM, Chancy said:

 

Not quite.  The requirement is the USC parent's physical presence in the US for 5 years prior to the child’s birth, at least 2 of which were after the age of 14.  Those 5 years do not have to be consecutive and all 5 years can be after age 14, as long as all were before the child's birth.  So college transcripts and US employment records are acceptable evidence. @Modestmama

 

Note that this is the general requirement for US physical presence, but there are actually different requirements depending on the circumstances of the child's birth -- https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/travel-legal-considerations/us-citizenship/Acquisition-US-Citizenship-Child-Born-Abroad.html

 

Thank you for clarifying and you are absolutely correct. I find that this part of the process can be one of the most challenging to understand and explain. 

Edited October 21, 2021 by milkywaynick