Get Your Family's Passports Ready for Spring Break Travel

Are you taking the family on an international vacation for spring break? Awesome! You’re going to have a great time. You might be busy with planning excursions and figuring out what to pack, but don’t forget to check to make sure everyone in the family has a valid passport before your trip.

It’s especially important to check your children’s passports before your spring break trip. Adult’s passports are valid for 10 years, but passports issued to kids under age 16 are only valid for five years! If it’s been a while since your last big family trip, your children’s passports might be closer to expiring than yours.

Today, we’ll review some of our top tips for passports for family vacation travel.

Tip 1: Check the Passport Validity Requirements for Your Destination

Spring break is the perfect time to pack up the family and head to a sunny destination like Mexico, Jamaica, or the Bahamas! Keep in mind that everyone in the family needs to have a valid passport book any time you are flying out of the United States. But just how much validity does your passport need to have? Some countries require you to have a minimum of six months validity left on your passport in order to enter, but other countries will let you enter even if your passport is closer to the expiration date. Not sure of the passport requirements for your destination? Check out PassportInfo.com’s page on popular destinations, or review the State Department’s Country Information.

Here are the passport validity requirements for some of the most popular destinations for spring break travel:

• Bahamas: passports must be valid at the time of entry.
• Bermuda: passports must be valid at the time of entry.
• Costa Rica: passports must be valid for the full duration of your stay.
• Jamaica: passports must be valid at the time of entry.
• Mexico: passports must be valid for six months past the end of your stay.

Common Passport Mistakes to Avoid

Are you making mistakes with your passport? Your passport is a valuable document, so it pays to take good care of it to ensure that it’s always available and valid for travel. Over our many years working with passports and visas, we’ve seen a lot of people make mistakes with their passports that wind up causing them a lot of hassle! Read through our list of the most common passport mistakes so that you won’t have any unpleasant surprises the next time you travel.

Mistake: Not Making a Photocopy of Your Passport

A photocopy of your passport can’t be used for travel, but it is still an incredibly useful document to have on hand. When you travel, we recommend that you leave a photocopy of your passport at home with someone you trust, and take a copy or two with you. If you passport is lost or stolen while you are traveling, it will be much easier to get a new passport at the nearest US Embassy or US Consulate if you have a photocopy of your lost passport to show them. Even if your passport is lost at home, your photocopy will be useful, because you’ll need to fill in the number and issue date of your lost passport on your application for a new one.

While traveling overseas, a photocopy of your passport can also be very useful when you are checking into hotels. Most hotels are required to register the passport details of their foreign guests, and some will ask you to leave your passport at the front desk while they fill out the paperwork. If you have a photocopy with you, you can just show them your original passport book, and then leave the photocopy at the desk. That way, your passport will stay safe with you!

Mistake: Forgetting to Sign Your Passport

Did you know that your brand new passport is not fully valid until you sign it? Many countries will not allow you to use an unsigned passport to enter. It’s even more of an issue if you have to apply for a visa before you travel. Embassies and consulates won’t issue visas on unsigned passports, so if your passport isn’t signed, you’ve signed yourself up for delays and additional shipping costs!

When you get your new passport, follow these guidelines to make sure your passport is signed properly:

• Sign your passport in blue or black ink. Do not use pencil or marker.
• Sign your passport with your full name as listed on your passport, including any middle names and suffixes.
• Children under age 16 may sign their own passports if they are capable of doing so, but the passport must also be signed by at least one parent.

Mistake: Keeping Your Passport in Your Back Pocket

Your back pocket is quite possibly the worst place you can carry your passport! Anything carried in your back pocket especially something large and slim like your passport – is easy pickings for thieves. Trust us, you don’t want to spend your vacation dealing with the headache of replacing a stolen passport!

Keeping your passport in your pocket is also an invitation to passport damage. We’ve known far too many people who have ruined their passports by leaving them in their pockets and tossing them in the washing machine! It’s an easy enough mistake to make when you’re tired after a trip, and it’s a good argument for not keeping your passport in your pocket in the first place. Even in the best case scenario, when your passport doesn’t wind up in the hands of a pickpocket or submerged in your washing machine, your passport can be badly damaged from repeatedly sitting on it.

If you want to keep your passport on your person while traveling, a much safer option is to use a traveler’s wallet around your neck under your clothes.

Mistake: Not Getting a Passport for Your Newborn

Many people think that newborn babies don’t need passports to travel internationally... but this is completely wrong! There’s no such thing as being "too young" for a passport. Every traveler needs to have his or her own passport, regardless of the traveler’s age.
The only time a child can travel outside of the US without a passport is if he is traveling to Canada by land or sea along with both parents. The parents will still have to prove the child’s US citizenship by carrying an original birth certificate showing birth in the United States. However, if you’ll be flying to Canada (or flying back to the United States!), you will need to have valid passport books for every member of your family.

Passports for newborn babies are issued according to the minor passport procedure. For more guidance, see our blog series on passports for newborn babies:

• Getting a Passport for Your Newborn Baby, Part 1: Birth Certificates
• Getting a Passport for Your Newborn Baby, Part 2: Essential Documents

Mistake: Not Checking the Validity of Your Passport

When does your passport expire? Not sure? Take a moment to check your passport’s expiration date. Trust us, it’s better to check your passport ahead of time than to discover at the airport that your passport expired a month ago!

Far too many people skip the step of checking their passport validity when they start making travel plans, and they discover too late that their passport is either expired or does not have enough validity left for their trip. Many countries require that you have at least six months validity remaining on your passport, so even a "valid" passport might not be valid long enough for your travel plans!

The least expensive way to renew your passport is to use the government’s standard speed mail-in service, which requires 6 to 8 weeks to complete. If your travel date is less than two months away, you’ll need to expedite your passport renewal. If you’re really in a hurry to get your passport, call a reputable passport expediting service - they can help you get a new passport in as little as 24 hours.

Have you ever made a passport mistake, or had a near-miss of a passport disaster? Tell us about it in the comments!

Source: https://passportinfo.com/common-passport-mistakes-to-avoid/

International Adoption – Passports and Visas to Bring Your Child Home

If you are thinking of expanding your family through international adoption, all of us at PassportInfo.com send our best wishes! The adoption process is an exciting and scary time, and when you’re adopting a child from another country, you’ll have to deal with extra logistics and paperwork. In this article, we’ll focus on the travel documents (passports and visas) you’ll need to bring your child home to the United States.

Passports for Parents

 

One of your first steps in the international adoption process should be to make sure that your US passport is valid for travel. If you don't currently have a passport, now is the time to get one! You should also check to make sure that your passport is in good condition and has blank visa pages. Most critically, check the expiration date of your passport. If your passport will expire within the next year, go ahead and renew it now. It's quite likely that you’ll need to travel on short notice when you have been placed with a child. When you finally get the call from your Adoption Service Provider to tell you that it’s time to fly to meet your new son or daughter, you don’t want to discover that your passport doesn’t have enough validity remaining!

Passports for US Citizen Children

 

If you have children who will be traveling with you when you adopt their new brother or sister, you’ll also need to make sure that they have passports that are up to date. Remember, passports for children under age 16 are only valid for five years, so your children may need new passports even if yours will be valid for years to come!

Travel Visas

 

During your preliminary adoption process, you’ll need to find out if the country you are adopting from will require you to have a visa to enter. Of the ten most popular countries for international adoptions, Colombia, Taiwan, Ukraine, and South Korea do not require visitor visas for US citizens. However, China, Russia, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Uganda, and Democratic Republic of Congo do require visas for all visits by US citizens. You are likely to need a business visa when you travel over to adopt your child, because you’ll be dealing with legal matters. If you’re just going over for a visit – either on a preliminary trip to visit your child before the adoption, or going back after the adoption to show your child the land of their birth – you can travel on a tourist visa.

Bringing Your Child Home With a US Immigrant Visa

 

The time has finally come – you’ve traveled abroad and been united with your child, and now it’s time to bring her home to the United States. Your child will enter the US on an immigrant visa, and will be granted full US citizenship after she gets to the US. Immigrant visas are special residence visas issued to people who are on a track to citizenship. Non-immigrant visas, like the business visa you may have used for your adoption trip, are visas that are issued for a limited stay for a specific purpose.

The type of visa your child will use to enter the US will be determined by the country you are adopting from, and whether that country is part of the international Hague Convention on Adoption. More than 90 countries around the world signed the Hague Adoption Convention in 2008, which unified the intercountry adoption process.

The United States is a signatory nation, as are all of the following countries:

Albania	Andorra	Armenia
Australia	Austria	Azerbaijan
Belarus	Belgium	Belize
Bolivia	Brazil	Bulgaria
Burkina Faso	Burundi	Canada
Chile	China (and Hong Kong)	Colombia
Côte d’Ivoire	Costa Rica	Croatia
Cubav	Cyprus	Czech Republic
Denmark	Dominican Republic	Ecuador
El Salvador	Estonia	Finland
France	Georgia	Germany
Greece	Guinea	Haiti
Hungary	Iceland	India
Ireland	Israel	Italy
Kenya	Latvia	Lesotho
Liechtenstein	Lithuania	Luxembourg
Macedonia	Madagascar	Mali
Malta	Mauritius	Mexico
Moldova	Monaco	Mongolia
Netherlands	New Zealand	Norway
Panama	Paraguay	Peru
Philippines	Poland	Portugal
Romania	San Marino	Serbia
Seychelles	Slovakia	Slovenia
South Africa	Spain	Sri Lanka
Sweden	Switzerland	Thailand
Togo	Turkey	United Kingdom
Uruguay	Venezuela	Zambia

Cambodia, Cape Verde, Fiji, Guatemala, Kazakhstan, Montenegro, Rwanda, Senegal, Swaziland, and Vietnam have also signed the Hague Adoption Convention, but they have not yet implemented it. These countries function like non-Hague countries.

If you are adopting from one of the Hague Convention nations listed above, your child will be issued either an IH-3 or IH-4 immigrant visa. If you’re adopting in a non-Hague country, your child will use an IR-3 or IR-4 immigrant visa to come to the United States.

Getting Parental Consent for Children’s Passports in Tricky Family Situations

Not every family fits the traditional mold of mom plus dad plus kids, all living together in one house. Since the US State Department has strict requirements for minor passports , you may have wondered how you can show parental consent if you have an unusual family situation. No need to worry! For every type of family, there is a solution to help you get a US passport for your child. In this article, we'll look at a number of scenarios and show you how you can satisfy the government requirements to get a passport for your kid.

The Basic Requirements for Parental Consent

For many families, showing parental consent for the issuance of a minor passport to a child under age 16 is relatively simple. The easiest way to show parental consent is to have both parents go with the child to the Passport Acceptance Facility. If it isn’t convenient to have both parents go at the same time, one parent will need to go in person, and the other parent can sign the official consent form DS-3503 and have it notarized.

Unmarried or Divorced Parents

Under State Department rules, it doesn't matter whether a child's parents are married or not. Both parents who are listed on the birth certificate will need to demonstrate consent for the child’s passport. Even if one parent holds sole custody, the other parent still has legal rights and needs to give their consent. Why? These stringent rules are in place to prevent international child abduction, and sadly, there have been cases of parents abducting their own children and taking them overseas to get them away from the other parent.

Only One Parent Listed on the Birth Certificate

If a child does not legally have a father – meaning that only the mother is listed on the birth certificate, and the biological father did not file suit to claim his paternal rights – then the mother can take her child to a Passport Acceptance Facility on her own. Only the mother’s consent is required in this case.

Deceased Parents

Children who have lost one of their parents are in a similar situation. The surviving parent is the only one who needs to show parental consent. The parent will need to take the child to the Passport Acceptance Facility in person, and will need to bring an original or certified copy of the deceased parent’s death certificate to demonstrate why the child has only one parent.

Children with Legal Guardians

Children who have legal guardians – whether because they have been orphaned or because their parents permanently lost their parental rights – will need their legal guardian(s) to provide consent. If they only have one legal guardian, the guardian will need to go in person with the child to the Passport Acceptance Agent. Children with more than one legal guardian will need all of their guardians to either go to the Acceptance Facility with them, or to sign and notarize Form DS-3053. The guardians will also need to submit certified copies of the court documents that granted them custody. If the child is an orphan, a certified copy of the parents’ death certificates should also be submitted.

One Parent Living Outside the United States

If one parent is not able to go to the Passport Acceptance Agent because they are currently overseas, they will still need to complete Form DS-3053 and have it notarized. Parents who are serving with the US military overseas can have the form notarized by a military notary. Civilians living overseas would need to go to the nearest US Consulate or Embassy to have Form DS-3053 notarized. Once the form is signed and notarized, that original form needs to be sent to the other parent in the United States so that it can be submitted along with the passport application.

Adopted Children

Adopted children also need to have the consent of their legal parents. Frequently, adopted children are issued amended birth certificates that list their adoptive parents as mother and father. Children with this type of birth certificate need to have this amended birth certificate submitted with their passport application, and the adoptive parents need to demonstrate consent just the same way that biological parents would.

If an adopted child’s birth certificate lists biological parents who have surrendered their parental rights, this birth certificate still needs to be submitted to demonstrate the child's citizenship by birth in the United States. The adoptive parents will also need to submit original or certified copies of the court documents finalizing the adoption.

Same Sex Parents

The US State Department was actually ahead of the curve when it comes to accepting same sex couples. Several years before gay marriage was legalized across the United States by the Supreme Court, the State Department redesigned passport application Form DS-11 to change the words "Mother" and "Father" to "Parent 1" and "Parent 2." It doesn’t matter to the State Department whether a child has a mother and a father, two mothers, or two fathers – all that matters is that all legal parents give their approval for a passport to be issued to the minor child.

The specific consent documents that are needed for children with same sex parents will vary according to who is listed on the birth certificate and whether or not either of the parents have formally adopted the child. Please feel free to contact us for advice on your particular situation.

Incarcerated Parents

Is your child’s other parent in prison? Even if a parent is behind bars, they are still required to give consent to the child's passport application. Incarcerated parents should be able to have Form DS-3053 notarized by a notary at their correctional facility. This original, signed and notarized form can then be presented to the Passport Acceptance Agent.

Parents Who Cannot Be Contacted

Sometimes it simply isn’t possible to get consent from both parents. Perhaps the custodial parent does not have any contact with the other parent and has no way of establishing communication, or perhaps it is not safe for the parent and child to contact the other parent because they fled an abusive relationship and have a restraining order. It could be that the other parent is in a remote location overseas with no access to a US Consulate to have Form DS-3053 notarized. The other parent may be critically ill and physically or mentally incapable of providing consent. There could be an emergency scenario that doesn't allow enough time to try to get consent from the other parent. In any situation like this, one parent or legal guardian still needs to accompany the child to the Passport Acceptance Facility, and they can complete and file Form DS-5525, the "Statement of Exigent/Special Family Circumstances." This form allows the accompanying parent to explain why it was not possible to get consent from the other parent, and what efforts were made to establish contact and receive consent.

Need more help to figure out what is needed for your child’s passport application? Contact us for assistance!

Source: https://passportinfo.com/child-passports-with-unusual-family-situations/

Passports for Teenage Travelers

Teenagers are always on the go… and teens who plan to travel outside the US will need to make sure they have a valid passport! The teenage years are all about the transition from childhood to adulthood, and that holds true for passports, as well. The US State Department issues minor passports to children up to age 15, and adult passports to teens starting at age 16. Read on to learn more about the special procedures to obtain a passport for your teen.

Teens Under Age 16

Until your teen’s 16th birthday, he or she is considered a child in the eyes of the State Department. Teens age 15 and younger are issued minor passports. These passports are valid for just 5 years, and cannot be renewed. Minor applicants are always required to appear in person in front of a Passport Acceptance Agent.

Minor passports require that both parents (or all legal guardians) give consent for the issuance of the passport. The easiest way to do this is to have both parents go with the child to the Passport Acceptance Facility. If you aren’t able to have both parents go to apply for the passport, at least one parent needs to go in person, and the other parent can sign and notarize Form DS-3053, the Statement of Consent. The parent who doesn’t go to the Passport Acceptance Facility will also need to provide a photocopy of his passport or the front and back of his driver’s license. (Having custody issues or trouble getting your child’s other parent to provide consent? Stay tuned, we have an article coming up soon about how to deal with tricky family situations when applying for a child’s passport.)

Getting a Passport for Your Newborn Baby, Part 2: Essential Documents

Between the sleepless nights, the spit-up, and the constant diaper changes, life with a newborn baby can be stressful enough! At PassportInfo.com, we want to help where we can, by making it simple to get a US passport for your baby. In this second part of our guide to passports for newborns, we’ll provide expert advice on how to obtain all the key documents you’ll need to get your baby’s passport fast.

The most important item needed for your baby’s passport application is the birth certificate, which proves your relationship to your baby and (if baby was born in the US) is proof of US citizenship. We covered birth certificates in part 1 of our guide, so today we’ll discuss the other essential documents you will need for your baby to get a US passport.

Social Security Number

 

Although you will not need to submit or show your child’s Social Security card, the passport application asks for the Social Security Number. When your child is born, a request for a Social Security card is submitted at the same time as the birth certificate paperwork; your hospital or midwife will assist with this. You’ll get your child’s Social Security card in the mail within a few weeks; processing times vary from state to state, with most states issuing Social Security cards within 2-4 weeks.

If you need to apply for your baby’s US passport before you have received the Social Security card, you can fill in “000-00-0000” on the question on the passport application

Getting a Passport for Your Newborn Baby, Part 1: Birth Certificates

“Does my newborn baby need a passport?” is a question that we hear often here at PassportInfo.com. The answer is YES!
Babies, even newborns, are subject to the same passport requirements as adults. If you plan to take your baby outside the US, you will need to go through the minor passport procedure to get your baby a passport. There are a few added elements of difficulty in getting a passport for a newborn, all of which we will help you solve with our two part guide to newborn passports. In today’s installment, we’ll go over the most important document you’ll need to apply for your baby’s first passport – the birth certificate.

Babies Born in the US

The key to getting a passport is to be able to prove US citizenship, and for babies born in the US, that is done by providing an original birth certificate. The birth certificate needs to be a “long form” that displays the parents’ names. Short-form certificates showing only the child’s information and card-style birth certificates are not accepted. Your very first step in getting your baby’s passport will be to get your baby’s birth certificate. The way you do this will vary, based on where you give birth.

• Hospital Birth: The staff at the hospital will give you a form to fill out with the information that will be listed on the birth certificate, including the baby’s name and details about the mother and father. They will then file this form with the local Bureau of Vital Statistics or Health Department for you. In some jurisdictions, the completed birth certificate will automatically be mailed to you, and in others, you may need to visit a government office in order to pick up the birth certificate. If you go in person, you must bring photo ID to show that you are the baby’s mother or father. Pro tip: request a second copy of the birth certificate! It is usually only a few dollars more to have a second original copy printed.
• Freestanding Birth Center or Homebirth with Certified Midwife: If you give birth outside of a hospital with a certified, registered midwife, your midwife will help you fill out and file the form for your baby’s birth certificate. The process is otherwise just the same as if you gave birth at a hospital.
• Unassisted Homebirth: It is a little bit more complicated to get a birth certificate if you give birth without a doctor or certified midwife in attendance. The requirements vary from state to state, so check with your local Health Department to find out exactly what you will need to do. If you are planning to give birth without assistance, it is a good idea to confirm the requirements for a birth certificate before the baby is born. In many states, you will need to provide “proof of pregnancy,” such as medical records or notarized statements from friends or relatives attesting to your recent pregnancy.

 

Babies Born Outside the US

There are two ways to become a US citizen by birth: one is to be born on US soil, and the other is to have at least one US citizen parent. If you are a US citizen, your baby is too, even if you give birth outside the United States. (Please note that if only one parent is a US citizen, that parent must have lived in the United States for at least five years at some point prior to the birth of the child, or only one year if the baby is born out of wedlock to a US citizen mother.)

If you have your baby in a foreign country, you will need to take your baby to a US Embassy or Consulate in order to have a Consular Record of Birth Abroad (CRBA) issued. Typically, you will also apply for your baby’s passport and Social Security Number at the same time. You will need to have your child’s birth certificate issued by the local authorities before you can apply for the Consular Record of Birth Abroad. Once issued, the CRBA will be your baby’s primary proof of US citizenship, and will be submitted when you apply for your child’s next passport… which won’t be that far off in the future, as minor passports are only valid for five years!

Stay tuned for part two of this series, when we’ll discuss other essential documents needed for your newborn’s passport.

Source: https://passportinfo.com/mexico-requiring-passports-at-san-ysidro-border/

Passport Renewals for Children

US passports issued to children age 15 and younger are valid for only five years, so sooner or later, every traveling family wonders how they can get their child’s passport renewed. There is no true renewal process for children like the passport renewals available for adults. Every time a child needs a new passport, the child’s identity and citizenship must be verified by a Passport Acceptance Agent.