Children Under Age 16—Special Requirements

U. S. Passport Applications
for
Children Under Age 16

Require Both Parents’ Signatures

As provided by Public Law 106-113, Section 236
Effective July 2, 2001

Both parents or child’s legal guardian must:

Present evidence of child’s U.S. citizenship and
Present evidence that they are the parents or guardian (i.e. certified U.S. birth certificate including parent(s)’ names) and
Show valid personal identification and
Sign and take oath before an authorized passport acceptance agent.

If the second parent is not available to sign, the appearing parent must:

Do the above and
Present evidence that he/she has:
- sole legal custody of the child or
- written consent of the absent parent for the issuance of the passport (the consent form/statement must be notarized) or
- written statement explaining why non-applying parent’s consent cannot be obtained.

If no parent is available to sign, the third-party in loco parentis must:

Appear with a notarized written statement or affidavit from both parents or custodial parent(s) authorizing the third-party to apply for passport. When the statement or affidavit is from only one parent, the third-party must present evidence of sole custody of the authorizing parent.
The law requires that all applications be signed under oath under penalty of perjury.

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The most efficient way to apply for a child under age 16 is to present the required documentation and

For both parents to appear at the time of application, or
If only one parent can apply, that applying parent/guardian has the additional documentation required for a single-signature application at the time of application.

Incomplete submissions will delay passport issuance. See below for examples of acceptable evidence.

For questions:

Visit the Bureau of Consular Affairs at travel.state.gov
Call the National Passport Information Center, toll free, at 1-877-487-2778

For Children Under Age 16
Citizenship, Relationship, and Identification Documentation Required

Evidence of child’s U. S. citizenship (one of the following):

Born in the U. S.	Born Outside the U. S.
certified U.S. birth certificate previous fully valid U.S. passport	Report of Birth Abroad (Form FS-240) previous fully valid U.S. passport Certificate of Citizenship or Naturalization from INS Certificate of Birth Aboard (Form DS-1350) or other evidence for first-time documentation

Evidence of child’s relationship to parents/guardian (one of the following):

Born in the U. S.	Born Outside the U. S.
certified U. S. birth certificate including parent(s)’ names	certified foreign birth certificate including parent(s)’ names Report of Birth Abroad (Form FS-240) Certification of Birth Abroad (Form DS-1350) with parent(s)’ names

adoption decree including adopting parent(s)’ names
court order establishing custody
court order establishing guardianship and authority to apply for passport

Parental identification (such as one of the following):
- valid driver’s license
- valid official U.S. military ID
- valid government (Federal, State, local) employee ID
- valid U.S. or foreign passport with recognizable photo
- Certificate of Naturalization or Certificate of Citizenship from INS with recognizable photo
- Permanent Resident Alien identification from INS

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Parental Application Permission: Appearance and Signature Documentation Required

Both parents appear together and sign or
One parent appears, signs, and submits second parent’s written statement consenting to passport issuance for child (consent form/statement must be notarized) or
One parent appears, signs, and submits primary evidence of sole authority to apply (such as one of the following):
- child’s certified U.S. or foreign birth certificate listing only applying parent
- Report of Birth Abroad (FS-240) or Certification of Birth Abroad (DS-1350) listing only one parent.
- court order granting sole custody (unless child’s travel is restricted by that order)
- adoption decree (listing only the applying parent)
- court order specifically permitting applying parent’s or guardian’s travel with the child
- judicial declaration of incompetence of non-applying parent
- death certificate of non-applying parent or
One parent appears, signs, and submits a written statement explaining why non-applying parent’s consent cannot be obtained or
Third-party in loco parentis appears with notarized written statement or affidavit from both parents or custodial parent(s) authorizing the third-party to apply for passport. When the notarized statement or affidavit is from only one parent, the third-party must present evidence of sole custody of the authorizing parent.

Children’s Passport Issuance Alert Program (CPIAP)

Separate from the two-parent signature requirement of U.S. passport issuance, parents may also request that their children’s names be entered in the U.S. Passport name-check system. The Children’s Passport Issuance Alert Program provides:

Notification to parents of passport applications made on behalf of their minor children, and
Denial of passport issuance if appropriate court orders are on file with the CPIAP.