2. Pick-up your baby's birth certificate as soon as possible and apply for the social security card immediately. Go directly to the social security office and apply in person. Make sure that you bring another document with your baby's name on it and proof that the hospital did not apply for your child's social security number. Apparently, people try to get two social security numbers through this type of fraud and sell one for profit. We didn't know this, but fortunately had a paper from the ER indicating Willow's full name. What a weird formality--especially since all the ER had as confirmation of Willow's name was our word of honor.
3. Wait for your baby's social security card.
4. Make an appointment with the passport agency nearest your vicinity. If you don't have your child's social security card by the time of the appointment, cancel and reschedule.
5. Once you've received the social security card, go to your passport appointment. Bring with you many, many documents. Including: social security card, birth certificate, forms filled out by parents, notorized consent if one parent is absent, flight itinerary proving urgency, copies of parents' identification, passport photos, money....etc....
6. Oh, by the way...get your child's birth certificate certified, notarized, and authenticated....just in case, because this is what China wants.
7. Wait for your baby's US passport to be expedited.
8. Go to the Chinese consulate to apply for a tourist visa for you baby so that your baby can enter the country of China.
9. Pay for the visa. Wait for the visa.
Yay! Now you can bring your child to China! Oooh, you'll also need to call the airline company to make sure that you have a bassinet for you baby to travel in. And, you'll need to be 10% of the economy ticket so that your baby can board the plane with you and sit on your lap.
Don't forget to pack plenty of diapers, wipes, and extra clothes for both you and your baby so that you'll be plenty prepared for the 30+ hours of transit.
~julie
It's much easier in China. You get the birth certificate when you leave the hospital. Then you go to the consulate and apply for report of birth abroad, passport and social security card all at once and you wait. The passport is done in 10 days and the SS Card comes in like 3 months. It sounds like it was much easier. Sorry, friend! BTW, Adam is over for dinner now and we were telling him to be sure to tell you to pack extra clothes in your carry on because they say it is best to nurse when ascending and descending to help your baby's ears to pop and then your child will probably throw up on you every time, just like ours did :-) See you soon!
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