The law was passed in an effort to combat international parent child abduction. Under current passport regulations, either parent or the legal guardian, regardless of citizenship, can apply for a passport on behalf of a minor child under 13 years old. Minors 13 years old and over apply on their own. The proposed passport regulation raises the age at which a minor child applied on his or her own to 14 and adds the requirement that both parents must apply for the minor child's passport or, if only one parent applies, this parent must establish his or her sole custody of the child of have the other parent's written consent.
Life overseas is quite fluid for many families.
Often one parent is traveling and unavailable when a child needs a new passport. Under the proposed regulation, parents must complete additional time-consuming steps, which may prevent the issuance of a minor child's passport as quickly as was possible under the prior regulation. Please pass on the above law to as many U.S. citizens as possible and especially to those parents who have U.S. citizen children under the age of 14. The Department of State welcomes public comments from the American community overseas regarding the two-parent signature statue.