Travelers who cannot present primary evidence of U.S. citizenship must submit secondary evidence of U.S. citizenship. The list of secondary evidence below will help you decide which is most appropriate for your situation. Passport applications are handled on a case-by-case basis. The options below serve only as general guidance.
If you were born in the United States and cannot present primary evidence of U.S. citizenship, you may submit a combination of early public records as evidence of your U.S. citizenship. Early public records must be submitted together with a birth record or Letter of No Record (see below). Early public records should show your name, date of birth, place of birth, and preferably created within the first five years of your life. Examples of early public records are:
Early Public Records are not acceptable when presented alone.
If you were born in the United States and cannot present primary evidence of U.S. citizenship because your U.S. Birth Certificate was not filed within the first year of your birth, you may submit a Delayed U.S. Birth Certificate. A Delayed U.S. Birth Certificate filed more than one year after your birth may be acceptable if:
It lists the documentation used to create it (preferably early public records) and
It is signed by the birth attendant or lists an affidavit signed by the parents
If your Delayed U.S. Birth Certificate does not include these items, it should be submitted together with Early Public Records(see above).
If you were born in the United States and cannot present primary evidence of U.S. citizenship because you do not have a previous U.S. passport or a certified U.S. birth certificate of any kind, you must present a state-issued Letter of No Record showing:
Your date of birth
The years for which a birth record was searched
Acknowledgement that no birth certificate was found on file
A Letter of No Record must be submitted together with Early Public Records (see above).
If you were born in the United States and cannot present primary evidence of U.S. citizenship, you may submit Form DS-10: Birth Affidavit as additional evidence of your U.S. citizenship. You may be requested to submit Early Public Records when submitting Form DS-10: Birth Affidavit. The birth affidavit:
Must be submitted in person with Form DS-11
Must be submitted together with early public records
Must be completed by an affiant who has personal knowledge of birth in the U.S.
Must state briefly how the affiant's knowledge was acquired
Should be completed by an older blood relative
NOTE: If no older blood relative is available, the affiant may be the attending physician or any other person who has personal knowledge of the birth.
If you claim citizenship through birth abroad to U.S. citizen parent(s), but cannot submit a Consular Report of Birth Abroad or Certification of Birth, you must submit all of the following:
Your foreign birth certificate
Evidence of citizenship of your U.S. citizen parent
Parents' marriage certificate
An affidavit of your U.S. citizen parent showing all periods and places of residence or physical presence in the United States and abroad before your birth
The following will not be accepted as evidence of U.S. citizenship:
1. How can you get a passport when you're in a hurry?
2. What exactly does a passport expediter do?
3. Are passport expediting services legitimate?
4. How can I identify a reliable passport expeditor?
5. Is expedited passport service worth it?
You can also visit our library of articles about passport expediting.
In a Hurry? Get Reliable Expedited Passport Courier Service: Expedite My U.S.Passport Now!About the Author: For over 20 years, the U.S. Passport Service Guide team has helped hundreds of thousands of travelers with their travel document questions and shared advice about how to make traveling abroad simpler, safer, and more enjoyable.
