general description
Periodically, DNA tests may be administered to establish the bona fides of a relationship when other tests are unavailable or insufficient. If you are denied a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) or denied an immigrant visa under section 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act for this reason, you may request a DNA test.
samples are taken from the people whose relationship you want to verify. an approved laboratory in the usa analyze the results. a consular officer will review the results and either approve the crba or visa application or confirm the original denial. This test is very accurate in determining blood relationships. the tests cannot show the ethnic origin of the applicants.
what type of dna sample method is used?
state department guidelines indicate that only the buccal swab method may be used for specimen collection. Currently, only the results of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) DNA testing methods can be accepted: short tandem repeat (pcr-str) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (rflp).
dna testing process
You are responsible for the full cost of the procedure, payable in advance, and there is no guarantee that the case will be approved after the trial. The petitioner may use any DNA laboratory accredited by the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB). The International Organization for Migration (IOM) must collect specimens from the applicant and, as necessary, from other persons in Vietnam. To request a DNA test, follow these steps:
Step 1: Locate an accredited facility
Contact one of the AABB approved laboratories and provide a sample for analysis. the petitioner or the parents in the us uu. You must work directly with the AABB approved laboratory and not use a non-accredited laboratory as an intermediary in the process.
step 2: shipping sample collection kits to usa. uu. embassy/consulate general for sample collection
The lab will then send a sample collection kit to the applicants as well as a prepaid federal express return envelope to the us. uu. embassy/consulate general. If the test is only between applicants in Vietnam, the applicant or the parents in the US. uu. You must have the AABB-approved laboratory ship the sample collection kits directly to the address below. the sample collection kit should include the following:
- a copy of the original us dna application. uu. embassy/consulate general or uscis i-797 application form with name and case number.
- contact information for applicants in vietnam, i.e. local address and phone numbers.
- a federal express prepaid return envelope or a federal express account number.
Laboratories should ship specimen collection kits via federal express only to:
united states embassy hanoi
fpu – dna collection kit consular section, united states embassy 7 lang ha street, hanoi, vietnam
united states consulate ho chi minh city
fpu – dna collection kit u.s. consulate general 4 le duan street, district 1 ho chi minh city, vietnam
step 3: contact applicants for dna appointments
upon receipt of the sample collection kit from the us. uu. laboratory, the international organization for migration (iom) will schedule an appointment with the applicant to collect specimens. Depending on the volume of DNA collection requests, wait times to schedule an appointment may vary. Generally, we will schedule an appointment for applicants on a first-come, first-served basis after receiving a specimen collection kit. the applicant will be informed of the date and place of the appointment by phone or letter. therefore, it is important that the us. The Embassy/Consulate General has the correct address and contact information for the applicant in Vietnam.
step 4: present yourself in the us. uu. embassy/consulate general for sample collection
- absence – if the applicant is unable to appear in the us. embassy/consulate general on the appointed day, he/she must contact the u.s. embassy/consulate general. If the case involves a consular report of birth abroad, contact US Citizen Services. if the case is related to an immigrant visa, please notify us here.
- Prior to collecting the sample, the applicant will need to provide the following:
- original and a copy of all applicants’ passports whose dna will be collected in the usa uu. embassy/consulate general;
- original and a copy of the identity card of all applicants whose dna will be collected at the u.s. embassy/consulate general;
- original birth certificate or official excerpt from birth certificate for all applicants whose dna will be collected in the us. uu. embassy/consulate general;
- US$60 per person for collection fees and documents (payable to IOM in US$); and
- two unmounted, unretouched, glossy color photographs, 5 cm x 5 cm (2 inches x 2 inches) in size, with white background. the size of the face should be approximately 2.6 cm (one inch) from the top of the head to the chin. the subject must look completely forward, towards the camera. The subject (or her guardian if she is under 18) must write the date of the test, her date of birth, print and sign her name on the back of both photographs.
step 5: samples sent to usa. uu. approved laboratories for analysis
the united states embassy/consulate general will send the sample directly to the us. uu. laboratory using the federal express prepaid package provided by the us. uu. laboratory. Please note that you are responsible for the following fees:
- cost of the collection kit, testing procedures, and shipping of the collection kit to and from the lab and the us. uu. embassy/consulate general (payable to laboratory).
- a sample collection fee of US$60 per applicant (US$, payable to IOM at time of collection).
step 6: the dna test results are sent to the usa. uu. embassy/consulate general for review by consular officers
after analysis, us. the lab should send the results, along with the applicant’s name and case number, to:
united states embassy hanoi
fpu – dna test results consular section, united states embassy 7 lang ha, hanoi, vietnam
united states consulate ho chi minh city
fpu – dna test results usa. uu. consulate general 4 le duan street, district 1 ho chi minh city, vietnam
a consular officer will review the results. If the results verify the claimed relationship and all other ineligibility has been resolved, the CRBA or immigrant visa will be issued. if the results do not verify that the claimed relationship exists, the original denial will stand. the United States. the embassy/consulate general will contact the applicant or petitioner after the final decision.
more information about the dna process is available on our state department’s website.