Child Immunization Records for children born outside the US

[MaxThai 7]

Hey everyone,

 

This question is specifically for parents of children born outside the US.

Background Info:

• We'll be living in California
• She is currently 4 yrs old (maybe 5+ by the time my wife gets her IR1 VISA lol)
• My child was born in Thailand
• Already has her US passport and CRBA, so no VISA or medical exam required.

 

When you enrolled your child (or children) into school, how did you handle the immunization records requirement? Should I get a doctor in Thailand to translate it? Will the school accept a translation? Tried researching on Google with no avail. All I have is this "pink book" the doctor fills out every time we go in for my daughter's vaccinations, all in Thai and I can't read it lol. 

[seekingthetruth 1,220]

52 minutes ago, MaxThai said:

Hey everyone,

 

This question is specifically for parents of children born outside the US.

Background Info:

• We'll be living in California
• She is currently 4 yrs old (maybe 5+ by the time my wife gets her IR1 VISA lol)
• My child was born in Thailand
• Already has her US passport and CRBA, so no VISA or medical exam required.

 

When you enrolled your child (or children) into school, how did you handle the immunization records requirement? Should I get a doctor in Thailand to translate it? Will the school accept a translation? Tried researching on Google with no avail. All I have is this "pink book" the doctor fills out every time we go in for my daughter's vaccinations, all in Thai and I can't read it lol. 

A year or two ago, I was looking into that for my USC kids born in the Philippines, but we postponed.  Now I need to start again.

 

I think this is mostly at the state level, or maybe even at the school district level.  I think they are more of recommendations, not strict requirements, for all but a few.  This list was long for Texas, but I think only a few are mandatory. 

 

I would start at the bottom and call the school district.

[MaxThai 7]

@seekingthetruth 

I've already contacted the school I plan on enrolling my daughter into and an immunization record is required for California schools. The school had no experience with this so they couldn't help me. Still waiting for a reply from the school district.

[Kanja 201]

3 hours ago, MaxThai said:

@seekingthetruth 

I've already contacted the school I plan on enrolling my daughter into and an immunization record is required for California schools. The school had no experience with this so they couldn't help me. Still waiting for a reply from the school district.

Get an official translation and then bring it to the child’s pediatrician in the states. The pediatrician will then decide if they accept it or not and put it into the state vaccine registry. Once it’s in the state registry the school district has to accept it. 

[MaxThai 7]

 

9 minutes ago, Kanja said:

Get an official translation and then bring it to the child’s pediatrician in the states. The pediatrician will then decide if they accept it or not and put it into the state vaccine registry. Once it’s in the state registry the school district has to accept it.

That is very helpfully, Thank you.

[Kanja 201]

2 minutes ago, MaxThai said:

 

 

That is very helpfully, Thank you.

If there is any they don’t accept the child will have to get them again. Make sure in the translation there are brand names and lot numbers of the vaccine. 

[Mike E 11,730]

4 hours ago, MaxThai said:

The school had no experience with this so they couldn't help me. Still waiting for a reply from the school district.

A California school district claiming  no experience with foreign  vaccination records is an either a lying school district or its students perform poorly. 
 

So poorly that affluent immigrants either refuse to send their kids to public school there, or they live in a school district where homes cost more because the school district is higher performing.  
 

Don’t  re-jab your kids.  Doctors can order  titer blood tests to verify their vaccinations.  

 

 

Edited January 22, 2023 by Mike E

[Chancy 6,233]

6 hours ago, seekingthetruth said:

A year or two ago, I was looking into that for my USC kids born in the Philippines, but we postponed.

 

IIRC, @top_secret would have actual experience with foreign vaccination records for a school in California.  But probably not the translation issue that OP has, as vaccination records from the Philippines are typically in English already.

 

[top_secret 2,134]

We had no problem at all enrolling our daughter with her Philippine "baby book" which is not any kind of formal document. It was mixed English and Tagalog language but an English reader could figure it out.  Most of the vaccines were designated by three letter abbreviations that seem standardized by WHO.  For Thailand I suppose it might be an issue if the name and dates needed translated, but I think they would have accepted an informal translation.  I really had the impression the school was quite flexible.  They just want to see any type of record they could figure out.

 

Later, when we took her in to a doctors appointment at a Kaiser clinic, a nurse there very meticulously went over her Philippine records and immigration records and inputted it all into the California state immunization registry.  So now there is an all inclusive formal record.

 

Edited January 22, 2023 by top_secret

[Ontarkie 13,995]

Best bet is go to your pediatrician and give them the immunization booklet. The nurse there can ask you to translate it if needed. They will then put it in the charts and you can get a print out of it for the school. 

[tree248 13]

Another resource for us was our local County Health Department. We went there to get a needed shot, and provided the immunization sheet from the medical exam to enter the US on a K-2 visa (and if we had one we would have provided the baby book and a translation, if needed). The Local Health Department put all of the immunizations into the state vaccination database.

Edited January 23, 2023 by tree248