Tiff

We leave in a couple days and my husband just called me because his "hair cutter person" told him that when she leaves out of the country with her daughter, not only does she the obvious passport, but she also has needed a affidavit from her ex-husband stating he is giving her permission to take said child out of the country.
Has anyone heard of this new requirement??? We leave for Curacao in three days, lovely. I have a call in to my travel agent, I will let you know her response. I was just interested to see if anyone else has heard of this tidbit...
Thanks, T.

Sunnyboy

I've heard of several people who this has happened to and were denied boarding because they didn't have the proper documentation. I've also heard that this "rule" is not always enforced and sometimes seems to be applied in an arbitrary fashion. On international flights many airlines require an affidavit if only one parent is accompanying a minor child. To be on the safe side you should check directly with your airline rather than leave it up to your travel agent.

Morgan

If they decide to check you will need a letter from non-custodial parent giving permision to take the minor child out of the country. And if you take some one else's child on vacation with you you also need written consent/authorization to obtain medical services if needed.

TomCayman

And they particularly apply this if it is the father who is the sole parent accompanying the child... sexist, or what ?

Seriously, better safe than sorry on this one.

Tiff

Thank you Sunny, we are going to do this just in case, type up a document stating I, blah, blah, blah, authorize blah, blah, blah. And then we'll get it notarized.
I just wish we would have known sooner, but at least we know about it now, and have a couple business days to accomplish the mission. I can't imagine some poor people planning their kid's spring break for months and then being denied access to fly out of the country. We are traveling with our daughter from his previous marriage and her two twin best friends, so my husband placed the call to his ex, and I called the parents of my step-daughter's best friends to get this going.
I have traveled all over the world, and have never heard of this, but then again, I am a new step-mom, so there you have it. New rules all around.
Thanks for your quick response, Sunny. And I sure hope other's find this useful. Thank God for my husband's hair stylist, ha.
Happy travels, T.

Tiff

p.s. Morgan, that is another good tip, the auth to treat for medical purposes. Luckily I had thought of that one, I was a nanny for five years in my early twenties (agessssssss ago, ha) so I had already requested that from them.
Glad you posted it though, for others. Thanks.

caribtraveler

yes, i have heard of that and it's not really new.
years ago, my sister went to visit my parents in south africa with her three kids (her husband wasn't traveling). the south african consulate warned her she'd need a letter from her husband saying he was allowing her to take the kids out of the u.s.
she indeed was asked for the letter at the airport upon departure.

benj

We had a notarized statement drawn up when my daughter went to France to stay with some people we knew. It said she had permission to travel with them & they had permission to get medical treatment for her if needed. We listed all our contact numbers on there as well. They had no problems but we did it just in case.

Maudy

i have been told since i travelled alone with my daughter when she was 12-16 to get a notarized letter to bring along, must have done this 5 separate trips and never did they ask me for it. but, of course, better to be on the safe side.

gail

Article in this past Sunday's Boston Globe about a married woman who was going to Mexico with her daughter. Were turned away at airport until they got notarized letter from her husband/father of kid stating it was OK to take kid out of US

cartera45

The requirement to get a letter from the other parent has been around for a long time, just not well publicized. My daughter and I have different last names because I never changed mine, and that is a real red flag so I always have the document. It has never been requested. Once when my ex refused to do the letter, I took a copy of the divorce papers that granted me sole custody - that will work too. There is a nice little form that I use. http://www.all-travel.com/form_minor.html

BjorkChop

Some countries, like Mexico require parental permission. For example, when I travel there, I take my divorce papers that show I have sole custody of my child so I do not need my ex-husbands permission to take her out of the country. If I didn't have sole but instead had shared custody, I would need a notarized letter of permission from him. Always check with the embassy to see if it's required or just recommended for that country. I usually recommended it to all my clients no matter where they're travelling to, just to be on the safe side.