A child born in Guatemala who moved to the United States with a green card and lived with a parent who is (or became) a US citizen may already have become a US citizen automatically under INA 320. Form N-600 is how the family gets USCIS paper proving it: a Certificate of Citizenship that recognizes the date the child became a citizen. This page covers that US filing from a Guatemalan family’s side: which conditions count, what it costs, and what the official guidance says about Guatemalan birth records. For the bigger picture of holding both nationalities, see our dual citizenship guide for Guatemala and the USA; this page does not repeat it.
Quick summary: Under INA 320, a Guatemala-born child automatically became a US citizen if, on or after February 27, 2001, and all at the same moment before turning 18, the child had a US citizen parent (by birth or naturalization), was a lawful permanent resident, and lived in the United States in the legal and physical custody of that parent. Form N-600 does not make anyone a citizen; it documents it. Fee: $1,335 online, $1,385 on paper (USCIS G-1055, last reviewed October 7, 2026). The N-600 instructions say you can file at any time if you became a citizen at birth or before turning 18. The birth certificate must be certified by a civil authority and come with a full certified English translation; the State Department’s Guatemala guidance says to request it from RENAP, front and back.
Is your child already a US citizen?
The USCIS Policy Manual (Volume 12, Part H, Chapter 4) sets out the INA 320 rule. A child born outside the United States automatically becomes a US citizen when all of the following have been met on or after February 27, 2001:
- the person is the child of a parent who is a US citizen by birth or through naturalization (including an adoptive parent);
- the child is under 18;
- the child is a lawful permanent resident (LPR);
- the child is residing in the United States in the legal and physical custody of the US citizen parent.
An example: a parent naturalizes in the US while the child, born in Guatemala, already holds a green card and lives with that parent. USCIS says there is no specific order for the conditions. The parent can naturalize first and the child get the green card later, or the other way round, as long as all conditions line up at a single point in time before the 18th birthday.
Two cautions from the same chapter. A person born outside the United States is presumed to be an alien, and the person claiming citizenship carries the burden of proof to show, by a preponderance of the evidence, that every requirement was met. That is why the evidence list below matters.
This page covers only the INA 320 route described above. If the claim is citizenship at birth through a US citizen parent, the N-600 instructions ask for proof of the US citizen parent’s residence or physical presence in the United States prior to the child’s birth. This page does not cover that branch; read the official N-600 instructions or get qualified advice.
What Form N-600 is and is not
The N-600 instructions are blunt: “Filing this application is NOT a request to become a U.S. citizen” — it is only a request for a certificate recognizing that you became a citizen on a particular date. Two practical consequences:
- File at any time. The instructions say you can file at any time if you became a citizen at birth or before turning 18. A parent or legal guardian can file for a minor child, and an adult can file for themselves years later.
- One shot per decision. If you already filed an N-600 and got a decision, USCIS will reject a new one. The instructions tell you to review your N-600 denial notice for more information.
When N-600 is the wrong form
The instructions say not to file N-600 if:
- you do not have at least one US citizen parent;
- your parent-child relationship does not fit one of the categories in Part 1, Item 2 of the form;
- you want to replace a lost or stolen certificate (that is Form N-565);
- you already received a decision on an earlier N-600.
The instructions also include a note that matters for families back in Guatemala: if the child is under 18, regularly resides outside the United States, and did not acquire citizenship at birth under INA 301 or 309, the US citizen parent, grandparent or legal guardian may need Form N-600K instead. Anyone over 18 should not file N-600K. Read the N-600K instructions before choosing.
Fees
USCIS fee schedule G-1055 (page last reviewed October 7, 2026):
| Situation | N-600 fee |
|---|---|
| General filing, online | $1,335 |
| General filing, paper | $1,385 |
| Current or former US armed forces member requesting a certificate for themselves (children of service members do not qualify) | $0 |
| Filing for someone who is the subject of a final adoption for immigration purposes and meets (or met before 18) the child definition in INA 101(b)(1)(E), (F) or (G) | $0 |
| Applicants eligible for a fee waiver (see Form I-912 instructions) | $0 |
The N-600 row lists no separate biometrics fee. Paying online saves $50 versus paper.
Online or on paper
USCIS accepts the N-600 online or by mail. You cannot currently file online if you are applying from outside the US, applying for a fee waiver, or are a member or veteran of the US military filing on your own behalf. Those cases go on paper.
Paper filers receive a USCIS Account Acceptance Notice by mail with instructions to create an online account to track the case. USCIS processes the application even without the account and keeps mailing copies of notices.
Where to mail a paper N-600
| If you live in | USPS address | FedEx, UPS, DHL address |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, Armed Forces - Europe, Armed Forces - Pacific, California, Colorado, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaii, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nevada, New Mexico, Palau, Texas, Utah, or outside the US (including Guatemala) | USCIS, Attn: NATZ, P.O. Box 20100, Phoenix, AZ 85036 | USCIS, Attn: NATZ (Box 20100), 2108 E. Elliot Rd., Tempe, AZ 85284-1806 |
| Alabama, Arkansas, Armed Forces - America, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming | USCIS, Attn: NATZ, P.O. Box 4088, Carol Stream, IL 60197-4088 | USCIS, Attn: NATZ (Box 4088), 2500 Westfield Drive, Elgin, IL 60124-7836 |
Addresses as published on uscis.gov/n-600 (page last reviewed June 1, 2026). Re-check the page before mailing.
Photos, biometrics and the oath
- Photos: if you live in the US, you do not send photos; USCIS schedules an appointment at a local Application Support Center (ASC) to take them. Applicants living outside the US must send two identical, color passport-style photos.
- Biometrics or interview: USCIS may require the child to appear for an interview or give fingerprints, photograph and/or signature for identity and background checks, including an FBI criminal history check. If needed, USCIS mails a notice with date, time and place. If you are overseas, the notice tells you to contact a US Embassy, US Consulate or USCIS office outside the US to schedule.
- Oath: at biometrics you sign an oath reaffirming that you provided or authorized all information, reviewed and understood it, and that it was complete, true and correct when filed.
- Children under 14: a US citizen parent filing for a child under 14 may sign at the ASC instead of the child.
- Do not miss it: if you skip the biometrics appointment, USCIS may deny the application.
Evidence checklist, with the Guatemala angle
From the N-600 instructions. Items marked “if applicable” depend on your family’s history.
| What USCIS asks for | What it means for a Guatemalan family |
|---|---|
| Child’s birth certificate, issued and certified by a civil authority in the country of birth (amended certificate if there was a final adoption in the US) | The Guatemalan birth certificate, with a full certified English translation. See RENAP birth certificate. |
| Birth certificate or record of the US citizen parent, certified by a civil authority in the country of birth | If the parent was born in Guatemala, this is also a Guatemalan record that needs a full certified English translation. |
| Proof of the parent’s US citizenship: a US birth certificate, Form N-550 Certificate of Naturalization, Form N-560 Certificate of Citizenship, Form FS-240, or a valid unexpired US passport | For a parent who naturalized, the N-550 is the listed example. |
| All marriage certificates of the US citizen parent, certified by a civil authority in the state or country of marriage (if applicable) | If the marriage was in Guatemala, this is a Guatemalan record that also needs a full certified English translation. |
| Proof of how any marriage of the applicant or the US citizen parent(s) ended: certified divorce decree, death certificate or annulment document (if applicable) | Same rule: certified records, fully translated if they are in Spanish. |
| Copy of the child’s Permanent Resident Card or other evidence of permanent resident status (required when claiming citizenship after birth through a US citizen parent) | The green card is the core of an INA 320 claim. |
| Proof of legal custody (only required if the US citizen parents divorced or legally separated, or the child was adopted or legitimated) | Gather custody orders early if the parents split. |
| Evidence of any legal change of name or date of birth, such as a document issued and certified by the court that authorized the change | Keep the certified document that authorized the change, and translate it in full if it is in Spanish. |
Adopted applicants also submit the full, final adoption decree and, where relevant, the US re-adoption or recognition-of-adoption evidence the instructions describe.
Guatemalan birth records: what the official guidance says
The N-600 instructions require a birth certificate or record issued and certified by a civil authority in the country of birth. They do not name a Guatemalan office.
The US State Department’s civil-documents page for Guatemala is part of its visa reciprocity guidance and is written for visa applicants. None of the USCIS N-600 sources we read repeats it, but it is the official US description of the Guatemalan birth record. It names the document as the Certificado de Nacimiento and says:
- Issuing authority. “request birth certificates from RENAP (National Registry of Persons) and not from your city or town”.
- Both sides. “Both the front and back pages of the document are required”.
Separately, USCIS’s own translation rule applies to any benefit request, including the N-600. The USCIS Policy Manual (citing 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3)) requires a full English translation of any foreign-language document, with the translator certifying that it is complete and accurate and that they are competent to translate into English. “A summary of a document prepared by a translator is unacceptable”.
For how to request the certificate in Guatemala, see our RENAP birth certificate guide.
What we could not verify
We publish only what the official sources state. As of 15 October 2026:
- Processing time: no current USCIS processing estimate for the N-600 was retrieved. We do not give one.
- Certificate expiration: no USCIS statement on this was retrieved.
- Apostille: no USCIS source we read requires an apostille for this filing; MINEX pages could not be read, so we make no claim either way about Guatemalan legalization.
- Guatemalan consulate help: MINEX consular service pages could not be read; we make no claim about consulate services, costs or appointments for this process.
- Guatemala-specific rules: we found no Guatemala-specific exception in the USCIS form page, instructions or Policy Manual chapters reviewed.
Sources
- USCIS, Form N-600 page (uscis.gov/n-600): last reviewed June 1, 2026; current form edition date 01/20/25. Read 15 October 2026.
- USCIS, Instructions for Form N-600 (n-600instr.pdf). Read 15 October 2026.
- USCIS, Fee Schedule G-1055: page last reviewed October 7, 2026. Read 15 October 2026.
- USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 12, Part H, Chapter 4 (INA 320) and Volume 1, Part E, Chapter 6 (translations). Read 15 October 2026.
- US Department of State, Guatemala visa reciprocity and civil documents page. Read 15 October 2026.
Related guides
- Dual citizenship Guatemala + USA
- Registering a US-born child as Guatemalan
- Guatemalan passport from the USA
- Guatemalan DPI from the USA
- Find your Guatemalan consulate
- RENAP birth certificate
Frequently Asked Questions
My child was born in Guatemala and I became a US citizen. Is my child already a US citizen?
Possibly, without any application. Under INA 320, a child born outside the United States automatically becomes a US citizen when all of these conditions have been met on or after February 27, 2001: the child has a parent who is a US citizen by birth or through naturalization (including an adoptive parent), the child is under 18, the child is a lawful permanent resident, and the child is residing in the United States in the legal and physical custody of the US citizen parent. The conditions can be met in any order, as long as all of them are met at the same point in time before the child’s 18th birthday. Form N-600 does not grant citizenship; it only asks USCIS for a certificate recognizing the date the child became a citizen.
How much does Form N-600 cost?
Per the USCIS fee schedule (Form G-1055, page last reviewed October 7, 2026): $1,335 if filed online and $1,385 if filed on paper. It is $0 for a current or former member of the US armed forces requesting a certificate for themselves (children of service members do not qualify for that exemption), $0 for certain adopted children under INA 101(b)(1)(E), (F) or (G), and some applicants may qualify for a fee waiver using Form I-912. The N-600 row does not list a separate biometrics fee.
Is there a deadline to file Form N-600?
No. The USCIS instructions say you can file Form N-600 at any time if you became a US citizen at birth or before you turned 18. A parent or legal guardian can file on behalf of a minor child, and the person can also file for themselves later as an adult.
Which Guatemalan birth certificate does USCIS need?
The N-600 instructions require a birth certificate or record issued and certified by a civil authority in the country of birth. For Guatemala, the US State Department’s civil-documents guidance (written for visa applicants) lists the document as the Certificado de Nacimiento, says to request it from RENAP (National Registry of Persons) and not from your city or town, and says both the front and back pages are required. Because it is in Spanish, USCIS requires a full English translation certified by the translator.
Does the Guatemalan birth certificate need an apostille for Form N-600?
The USCIS sources we reviewed (the N-600 page, the N-600 instructions and the Policy Manual chapter on translations) require a certified civil record and a full certified English translation. They do not establish an apostille requirement for this filing. We could not read the MINEX pages on 15 October 2026, so we make no claim about Guatemalan legalization services.
Can we file Form N-600 while living in Guatemala?
The N-600 can be filed from outside the United States, but not online: applicants outside the US must mail a paper application to the USCIS Phoenix Lockbox, include two identical color passport-style photos, and, if biometrics are required, contact a US Embassy, US Consulate or USCIS office abroad as the notice instructs. The N-600 instructions also note that a child under 18 who regularly resides outside the US and did not acquire citizenship at birth under INA 301 or 309 may need Form N-600K instead; check the N-600K instructions before filing.
We lost the certificate. Do we file a new N-600?
No. To replace a lost or stolen certificate, the instructions point to Form N-565. And if you already filed an N-600 and received a decision on it, USCIS will reject any later N-600.
Does getting the US certificate affect the child's Guatemalan nationality?
That is a question of Guatemalan law, covered in our dual citizenship guide for Guatemala and the USA. This page covers only the US document.
