Send passports to Consulate for ROB by Mail

[Snorkel378 38]

Good evening y'all, 

My wife and I just had a beautiful baby girl, who is a dual citizen of the US and the Philippines, and we are about to send off all of our Report of Birth to the Consulate in LA, but the mail instructions also want us to mail our passports, which we don't exactly feel comfortable with. Has anyone filed by mail without enclosing passports, or did you just suck it up? Thanks in advance.

[Hank_ 9,174]

10 hours ago, Snorkel378 said:

Good evening y'all, 

My wife and I just had a beautiful baby girl, who is a dual citizen of the US and the Philippines, and we are about to send off all of our Report of Birth to the Consulate in LA, but the mail instructions also want us to mail our passports, which we don't exactly feel comfortable with. Has anyone filed by mail without enclosing passports, or did you just suck it up? Thanks in advance.

Requirements state original or certified true copy  

 

http://www.philippineembassy-usa.org/philippines-dc/consular-services-dc/faq-dc/#birth

[Snorkel378 38]

Yes, but I’ve never heard of such a thing as a certified copy of a passport.

[Hank_ 9,174]

52 minutes ago, Snorkel378 said:

Yes, but I’ve never heard of such a thing as a certified copy of a passport.

You could make a copy of your passport then take your passport and the copy to a notary.  

[Snorkel378 38]

Sadly that’s illegal in Texas, so looks like I have to send the originals and hope they don’t go astray.

[Hank_ 9,174]

Notarizing a passport is illegal in Texas?    Hmm ~

 

One other option is:   If you need to acquire a certified copy of your document, you can do so through the vital records office of the state/county in which you live

 

https://www.sos.state.tx.us/authinfo.shtml

 

http://www.notaryrotary.com/archive/forum/2011/July/Texas_Notaries_Can_Make_Certified_Copies_of_Passports.html

[Snorkel378 38]

The only issue is that passport are federal/foreign documents that Texas/Bexar county doesn’t have. I’m gonna copy them myself and have a statement notarized saying I certify these are unaltered copies and see what happens.

[Hank_ 9,174]

8 minutes ago, Snorkel378 said:

The only issue is that passport are federal/foreign documents that Texas/Bexar county doesn’t have. I’m gonna copy them myself and have a statement notarized saying I certify these are unaltered copies and see what happens.

Federal government has no issue with copies of the passport being made.   That one link was to the state of Texas website, and there was no issue with making copies and getting them notarized, so this is a county thing where you are?

Take the document to the country recorder/vital records.. they will make certified copies at least the counties in all the states where I have lived will do that without issue.

Edited November 23, 2017 by Hank_