Citizenship And Your Child's Immigrant Visa

Under the Hague convention, adopted children from China become automatic United States citizens upon arrival in the United States. This is true even if only one spouse traveled to China to complete the adoption.

Your child will be issued an IH-3 immigrant visa in China. IH3 visas are for children who are adopted in a Hague Convention country. Children who are under 18 automatically acquire U.S. citizenship upon entry to the United States on an IH-3 immigrant visa. In such cases, USCIS automatically sends Certificates of Citizenship without requiring additional forms or fees.

The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 was designed to make acquisition of U.S. citizenship easier and to eliminate extra steps and costs. Under the Child Citizenship Act, children adopted abroad automatically acquire U.S. citizenship if:

• At least one of the child’s parents is a U.S. citizen
• The child is under 18
• The child lives in the legal and physical custody of the American citizen parent
• The child is admitted into the United States as an immigrant for lawful permanent residence
• The adoption is final.

Since adopted children from China under the I-800 Hague Convention meet all these qualifications, your child is an automatic US citizen upon arrival in the USA. The USCIS will mail your child a certificate of citizenship within sixty days of your arrival back home.

Important Note:

If only one parent will be traveling to China, some adoption agencies will try to convince you that the adoption will not be final in China and that your child won't be a US citizen immediately upon landing in the USA for the first time (although this is becoming less common as most agencies now understand the full scope and regulations of the Hague Convention). THIS IS NOT TRUE! If you are a Hague I-800 family, your child will be an automatic US citizen REGARDLESS of whether both parents travel or not. Some agencies do not understand this!! This is what our family did during our last adoption, and it DOES work!

Click here to learn more about one parent travel.

Once You're Home

Within 60 days of your arrival back home in the US, you will receive your child's Certificate of Citizenship (CoC). Keep this important piece of paper in a safe and secure place in your home!

Click here to learn more about USCIS.

Go from Immigrant Visas to Travel

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