European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 08, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 the stars and stripes wednesday june 8, 1977 i Cut red tape file Early for passport by Lucia Guajardo staff writer Frankfurt is vacation an pcs season june through August is Here. That Means the heavy season is also Here for the people who Issue pass  Ernest b. Gutierrez of the pass poit division of the american consulate general in Frankfurt has some tips that May help you avoid red tape  consulate issues More than 15,000 passports annually so the waiting time i sometimes considerable he said. Gutierrez office urges callers to save time and avoid a trip to the consulate by applying for passports at regional person Nel centers As soon As they learn they need  personnel centers have com plete information on passport require ments and necessary forms. The documents brought by military courier Are processed right away according to Gutierrez and Are usually in the mail the next Day. The Frankfurt office accepts applications from Hussen Rheinland Pfalz and Saarland Only. Other american consular offices Are located in major cities through out  most frequently recurring headache for consular employees comes from person who Lack acceptable birth certificates when applying for passports Gutierrez said. Hospital birth certificates notifications of birth registration and certifications of birth registration Are unacceptable. Acceptable certificates Are those issued by the Legal custodian of births bearing the raised Seal of that office. Children previously included in the pass port of a Parent or older child May present Hospital birth certificates notifications of birth registration or certifications of birth registration to verify Date and place of birth Only when applying for passports of their  passport bearer May travel without those included on his passport but person included on someone else s pass port Rilay not travel without the  Between the Ages of 12 and 17 need not appear in person to be included Ona Parent s passport however those be tween 12 and 17 applying for individual passports must appear in person. Children under 12 Aren t required to appear at Al the second most frequently recurring problem is lost or stolen passports. About800 passports Are reported lost annually in the Frankfurt area alone Gutierrez  owner must file a police report immediately. A new passport can be Issue the same Day if the owner shows an old cancelled passport which identifies him Asa . Citizen Gutierrez said. If the person does t have that a Tele Gram is sent to the department of state in Washington at the applicant s expense for verification that a passport previously was issued. That could take 10 or 11 Days particularly during the summer months. Often found the missing document is often found so application for replacement should not be made immediately passport officials said. Officials request that in Case of Emer gency travel applicants Call the consulate before appearing in person so they May be informed of requirements and exceptions that May be made. Proper passport photographs Are must Gutierrez said. There must be two photos no More than six months old that measure 2 -by-2v4 inches or $by-3 inches and show a frontal View against a Plain Light background on thin unglazed paper he said. Consulate asks 4-month head Start if you need a visa ifs later than you Fumk by the Start and stripes Frankfurt if your new spouse needs a visa to accompany you Home Don Twait until the last minute. Or Day. Or week. Or  d like to see All military and Dod personnel begin their paperwork for visa four months and not less than three months before their rotation Date to  said Alfons e. Riba officer in charge of the immigration and naturalization service at the american consulate general  . Citizen or Legal resident must Hie a petition on behalf of whomever need sit. Whether it s tile spouse child brother sister or Parent. It is the . Citizen petitioning for his  Riba said. The sponsor flies the petition with the Immi Gration and naturalization service and pays the $10 filing  Holdup is that petitioners often Don t have All the necessary paperwork the need to prove their citizenship and their relationship with the person they Are petitioning for according to Riba. Getting the initial petition is Esy the Yare available at most judge advocate offices or at the consulate. The form has Tobe filled out and executed under oath. That can either be done Here or at a jag  the oath is taken everything can be done by mail. He can mail us the form an the $10 filing  Riba said. The petition is the document officials Check to see if prospective immigrants qualify for exemption from yearly Immi Gration limits Riba explained. No waiting period1"an approved petition Means there s no waiting period no time limit As far As the dependents Are concerned so it s important to have the paperwork done completely accurately and Early Riba said. Any alien dependent who wishes to stayin the . Must get an immigration visa unless the alien has immigrated beforehand already has resident alien status. We have to have supporting documentation to show that the Petitioner is an american citizen or Legal resident. He must present a birth certificate or pass port As proof of citizenship. For a resident alien sponsor proof of status would be the alien registration  relationship then we have to establish through documentation his relationship with the person he s petitioning for. If it s for Aman s wife then we need to have two copies of their marriage certificate an proof of termination of any prior marriages or a death  decrees Are where we run into problems because most often they Are bade in the states. We also want two certified copies of the birth record of the person wishing to immigrate. The certificate must state the Date and place of birth and the names of both parents. We need three Iden tical photographs showing the full fac with no head covering Ana there must be evidence to show that there is support forthe person wishing to immigrate. For adopted children we need adoption decrees. All immigrating aliens must also give us a recent medical report and Good conduct report from police in any country and each . State in which the alien has spent More than six months since age 16," Riba  fee is a for a visa application and 120 when the visa is issued so the total Isis it takes time to get All this documentation together Riba continued. If they Don t have it All that s when people get upset. They come in Here without some of the documentation that we can t waive be cause we must follow the immigration Laws and regulations so the husband Goeson to the states and his wife sits Here wait  family As Onu this is what we re trying to avoid. We want to Send the family off As a unit not separately and the one Way we can do thesis by getting cooperation from the applicant himself. If people would get their documentation in order it Wou smooth the entire process Riba said. A As All the documentation i there it does t take us Long to process an application. We re current on issuing visa so if people come in we can take care of it in 10 or 15 minutes he said. After an alien has supplied the consulate with the documents and the consulate has run its checks an interview follows. The report of the medical examination which May be taken at a base Hospital usually i forwarded to the consulate or brought in at the time of the  visa applications Are denied but they can be turned Down because of miss ing documents unsatisfactory police or medical reports or affiliation with communist or extremist organizations Riba  can get a Fiancee visa that in artes them to marry an alien in the ., Riba said. Immigration and naturalization service petitions Are sent to the service office nearest the sponsor s last . Resi Dence or nearest the Point where the couple plans to be married. The approved petition comes Back to the consulate near est the alien s Home. Fiancee visas any consulate can process Fiancee visas but the requirements Are the same As those for alien dependents so the process of get v Ting All the proper documentation together will take just As Long. There is no feeler this visa. " immigrant visas usually Are Good for four months. U the alien cannot be in the ,-. By then another visa is necessary. A Fiancee visa is Good for six months but the marriage must take place within 90 Day after the visa is issued Riba  consulate Here is the Only one to West Germany that processes req eat for immigrant visas. Some 4,000 military and Dod personnel Are processed through a Frankfurt office annually according to Riba. Start Early it would t be so bad if we could Gat people to Start their paperwork Tox months Early. That would spread the workload out Over the year too rather than a us All in one or two summer months. Guys often get confused. They seem to think toe passport people and us work for the Sam outfit because we re together Here at inf t consulate but the immigration and Nat Rau Zattoo service is under the department a of Justice. We cover 13 countries out of tttl1one off ice he said. �