Register US-born child for Venezuela dual nationality

Status as of October 3, 2026 — no Venezuelan consulate in the US is listed or announced as open for services. Venezuela and the United States agreed on March 5, 2026 to re-establish diplomatic and consular relations (statements by Venezuela’s foreign ministry, MPPRE, and the US State Department). On September 12, 2026, Venezuela’s state broadcaster RNV reported that the consulate in New York had been renovated but that the authorities had not yet issued an official statement setting a date for its formal opening to the public or enabling the appointment system for procedures. As of October 3, 2026, MPPRE’s list of Venezuelan consulates worldwide includes no office in the United States, and no opening date has been announced. For a birth registration, the documented routes are a Venezuelan mission outside the US or a Civil Registry office inside Venezuela (see below). See the 10-year passport validity rule and current routes.

Children born in the United States are US citizens by birth (14th Amendment). Venezuela’s foreign ministry (MPPRE) describes the consular Registro de Nacimiento as the registration of a child born abroad “de padre y/o madre venezolanos por nacimiento o naturalización”, and lists it as free.

What the registration does

  • Grants Venezuelan nationality through the civil registry. The Venezuelan embassy in France explains that the consular act formalizes the registration to grant the child Venezuelan nationality, “que se hace efectivo con la emisión de una Partida de Nacimiento en la oficina de Registro Civil, según su ultima dirección en Venezuela”.
  • Opens the door to a Venezuelan passport. Venezuelan minor-passport requirement lists include the child’s birth certificate; the passport is a separate application through SAIME.
  • Travel to Venezuela. The US State Department’s country page says “Venezuelan law requires that Venezuelan citizens enter and depart the country using Venezuelan passports” (last updated April 20, 2026).

Who the consular route covers

  • Children under 18 only. The Venezuelan embassy in France: “El Acta de Nacimiento Consular se realiza exclusivamente a los menores de dieciocho (18) años”; the consulate in Lisbon also limits it to children under 18. Someone 18 or older applies directly at a Civil Registry office.
  • Children of naturalized Venezuelans — offices state different rules. The embassy in France says the children of naturalized Venezuelans must be registered at a Civil Registry office inside Venezuela and cannot be registered at a consular office (citing Article 32, ordinal 4 of the Constitution and Article 10 of the Ley de Nacionalidad y Ciudadanía). MPPRE’s own requirement list includes the parent’s Gaceta Oficial or naturalization certificate “si fuere el caso”, and its nationality-declaration page for children of naturalized parents asks for the original “constancia de residencia en Venezuela”. Confirm with the office before applying.
  • Children born in the office’s district. The France page describes the consular act for children “nacidos/as en la circunscripción consular” — confirm that an office outside the US will register a child born in the US.

Dual nationality

The US Department of State publishes its general guidance on dual nationality.

On the Venezuelan side, the State Department’s Venezuela country page says that dual US–Venezuelan nationals “must plan to travel between the United States and Venezuela with valid U.S. and Venezuelan passports.” We found no official Venezuelan statement on dual nationality in the sources checked on October 3, 2026.

Required documents

MPPRE’s requirement list for the Registro de Nacimiento (undated catalog, consulted October 3, 2026):

  • Child’s birth certificate — one original and two copies, issued by the local authority where the birth occurred, “debidamente apostillada o legalizada y traducida por intérprete público legal, si fuere el caso”. For a US birth certificate this means a certified copy with an apostille from the issuing state, plus a Spanish translation by a public interpreter.
  • Declaración de Voluntad de Acogerse a la Nacionalidad Venezolana — the original, issued by the consulate or embassy, “si fuere el caso”. MPPRE calls this declaration “un paso previo necesario para la inscripción de nacimiento” of children born abroad; it is made before the consular officer, is free, and also requires the IDs of two witnesses.
  • Venezuelan parents’ passports — original and three copies
  • Venezuelan-by-birth parents’ birth certificates — three copies, or the registration data of the act (Civil Registry office, number and date)
  • Gaceta Oficial or naturalization certificate — three copies, if applicable
  • Foreign parent’s identity document — original and three copies, if applicable
  • Identity documents of two witnesses — original and three copies
  • Fee — free. MPPRE: “Este trámite es gratuito”; Lisbon: “ARANCEL CONSULAR: Gratuito”; France: exempt from consular fees.

Office-specific additions (consulted October 3, 2026):

  • Embassy in France: four original full birth certificates, each with its own apostille; multilingual birth certificates are not accepted; a sworn translation of one apostilled certificate (including the apostille); a completed form plus the “Estadística de Nacimiento Vivo Ocurrido en el Extranjero” form; at least one Venezuelan parent present at the appointment.
  • Consulate in Lisbon: apostille first, then the notarized translation into Spanish; birth certificates that do not show the time of birth are not accepted; a registration form and a birth-statistics form requested by email.

Who declares the birth: MPPRE says the declaration is mandatory, in this order: the father or mother; blood relatives up to the fourth degree; or any adult who legally represents or is responsible for the child. A declarant acting by mandate needs a poder, apostilled or legalized and translated where applicable.

Step-by-step process (as of October 3, 2026)

Common first steps

  1. Order a certified US birth certificate from the state vital records office (see vital records by state).
  2. Get it apostilled by the issuing state’s apostille authority (see apostille process).
  3. Have it translated into Spanish by a public or sworn translator.

Route A — a Venezuelan mission outside the US

  1. Choose an embassy consular section or consulate from MPPRE’s list of consulates and confirm that it will register a child born in the US.
  2. Complete the Declaración de Voluntad at that office if it applies to your case.
  3. Attend the appointment with the documents above and two witnesses.
  4. Wait for the civil-registry record — the France embassy says the process can take one year or more; Lisbon says it contacts the family within five business days to sign and collect the consular document.

Route B — a Civil Registry office inside Venezuela

The Venezuelan embassy in France recommends registering directly at a Civil Registry office in Venezuela for a faster partida de nacimiento. It says this can be done by the parent, a close relative (grandparent, sibling, spouse) or a third party with a poder, and that it requires one birth certificate apostilled and translated into Spanish by a sworn translator, plus copies of the parents’ identity documents and Venezuelan birth certificates.

After registration

Once the child’s Venezuelan birth is registered:

  • The child can apply for a Venezuelan passport (a separate SAIME application)
  • For travel between the US and Venezuela, the State Department’s Venezuela page says dual US–Venezuelan nationals must plan to travel with valid US and Venezuelan passports, and that Venezuelan law requires Venezuelan citizens to enter and depart Venezuela using Venezuelan passports

Authoritative sources

Last verified: 2026-10-03. General procedural information for educational purposes. Citizenship-by-descent rules and office requirements change. Verify directly with the Venezuelan office that will serve you before traveling. Not legal advice.