Enrolling a Child in a US School With Russian or Ukrainian Records

A school district may not bar a student from enrolling because of a foreign birth certificate. Rules on age documents vary among states and districts. A complete English translation of a birth certificate, vaccination record or report card reproduces every entry, stamp and date of the original.

What does federal guidance say about enrolling a child with foreign documents?

In Plyler v. Doe (1982), the Supreme Court held that a State may not deny a child equal access to public education because of immigration status.

Joint Justice and Education Department guidance, as summarized by the Office for Civil Rights, says districts may establish documentation requirements for a student's age, residency and immunization status. Students may not be barred from enrolling because of their own or their parents' citizenship or immigration status.

The same guidance says a district that asks for a Social Security number should make clear that providing it is voluntary. Choosing not to provide one will not bar a child's enrollment.

Is a birth certificate required, and can it be a Russian or Ukrainian one?

School officials may request documentation to show that a student falls within the district's minimum and maximum age requirements. Rules vary among states and districts as to which documents show age, and jurisdictions typically accept a variety of documents.

Depending on the state or district, the guidance lists examples such as a religious, hospital or physician's certificate showing date of birth, an adoption record, an affidavit from a parent, or previously verified school records.

A district may not bar or discourage a student because the student lacks a birth certificate or has records that show a foreign place of birth, such as a foreign birth certificate. A foreign-born child who cannot or will not provide a birth certificate has the same options to enroll as a U.S. citizen child in that situation.

A complete translation of a Russian or Ukrainian birth certificate reproduces the full record: the child's name, date and place of birth, parents' names, record number, issuing office, date of issue, seals and stamps. A booklet-style or older form is translated page by page, including any handwritten entries and notes.

What do schools check on a vaccination record?

California is one example. According to the California Immunization Handbook, before a child under 18 is admitted to a California school, public or private, California law requires a parent or guardian to present an immunization record to staff.

The Handbook says the personal immunization record must identify the child by name and date of birth, show the month, day and year each required vaccine dose was received, give the type of vaccine, and include the name of the physician or agency that gave it. California Department of Public Health training notes list the same elements for staff to check: name, birthdate, vaccine, date given and health care provider.

The Handbook also says records from other states and countries are often acceptable.

For international students, oral polio vaccine doses given on or after April 1, 2016 do not count, and the student must show proof of inactivated polio vaccine. A translation reproduces the vaccine type exactly as written on the original.

What happens if staff cannot understand a foreign record?

For children entering school from another country, the California Immunization Handbook says staff obtain immunization records from the parents and do not wait for a record from the previous country. Families without personal records, with missing doses, or with foreign records that staff cannot understand are referred to their physician or local health department.

A full English translation reproduces every vaccine name, dose date and clinic stamp in English.

How is a report card translated?

A report card or school certificate is translated in full, not summarized. A complete translation reproduces:

• The student's name, class or grade, school year and school name, with names spelled as in the international passport.
• Every subject and every grade, in the same order and layout as the original.
• The grading scale printed on the document, shown as written. Grades are not converted to U.S. letter grades.
• Teacher and principal signatures, the school seal and round or square stamps, each marked as a signature, seal or stamp.
• Handwritten notes, attendance entries, comments and the date of issue.

What language help does the school owe parents?

According to the joint Justice and Education Department fact sheet, schools must communicate information to limited English proficient parents in a language they can understand. This includes information about registration and enrollment in school. Language assistance must be free.

Schools must provide translation or interpretation from appropriate and competent individuals. They may not rely on or ask students, siblings, friends or untrained school staff to translate or interpret for parents. The fact sheet also says that when a child enrolls, parents should receive a home language survey or similar form that helps the school identify potential English learners.

What should the English translation of a school document look like?

1. 1Every page is translated, front and back, including blank-looking pages that carry stamps.
2. 2Each stamp, seal, signature and handwritten entry is described or translated in its place.
3. 3Names and dates match the passport and the original, with the same date order and no changes.
4. 4Numbers, record numbers and vaccine dates are copied exactly, with unreadable parts marked as unreadable.
5. 5A signed certification states that the translator is competent in both languages and that the translation is complete and accurate.
6. 6The translation is delivered as one file.

How POVO translates school enrollment documents

Russian and Ukrainian into English, every page and stamp, names as in the passport, signed certification, one PDF, from $23.70 per document.