REGISTERING A BIRTH

The birth of a child in Portugal to U.S. citizen parent(s) should be reported as soon as possible with the U.S. Embassy in Lisbon for the purpose of establishing an official record of the child’s claim to U.S. citizenship at birth. The official record is in the form of a Consular Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the United States of America. This document can be prepared only at an American consular office overseas while the child is under age 18.

Applications for birth registrations are accepted by appointment only. To schedule an appointment, you may do so by following the instructions in the New Appointment System paragraph on this website.

To apply for the Consular Report of Birth Abroad, you will need the following documents:

• A certified copy of the child's long form Portuguese birth certificate, "Assento de Nascimento";
  
• Passport of the U.S. citizen parent(s) as well as U.S. Naturalization Certificate, if applicable;
  
• Proof of identity for the non-U.S. citizen parent, such as ID card or passport;
  
• Marriage certificate if the parents are married;
  
• Divorce decree if either parent has been divorced;
  
• Declaration from the hospital showing the mother's name, child's sex and date of birth;
  
• The child's health booklet issued by the hospital;
  
• One 5x5 cm photo of the child (baby pictures cannot be taken at the Embassy);
  
• Proof of physical presence in the U.S. if only one parent is a U.S. citizen. The parent must demonstrate that s/he has lived in the U.S. or its outlying possessions for at least five years, at least two of which were after the age of 14. Evidence can include tax documents, school transcripts/report cards, school/college diplomas, etc.; and
  
• The following completed forms:
  
  - application for Consular Report of Birth Abroad (DS-2029) (pdf 56 KB)
  - passport application (DS-11) (pdf 1.53 MB), and
  - application for social security number (SS-5) (pdf 60 KB)

Both parents and the child should be present for the interview.

For current information about our consular fees, please click here. 

For additional information, please visit: http://www.travel.state.gov/law/info/overseas/overseas_703.html

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