Traveling with a child when you are not their parent

Some info here--
https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/entry-exit/travel-documents-minors/index_en.htm

When travelling by air it is highly recommended that you check with the airlines before departing as many require official authorisations and have their own specific forms for this purpose.

You can find forms on line to fill out the details and then have the parents provide a notorized copy. We did this when traveling with our granddaughter. The information included permission to travel with the information about where we would be traveling and also medical release form to authorize us providing medical care if necessary. It included the names and address of the parents as well. We also had in addition to her passport, copies of her birth certificate and this notorized form. We were never asked to show it anywhere but it is something one should have when traveling with children not their own.

FWIW we just looked at the forms on line and then typed up our own rather than paying to join some form service.

All good things to take. We also took a passport sized picture of her that could be used if needed for a transportation card or new passport if hers was lost. Like others said, print out an authorization for medical treatment and a permission to travel form signed by her parents and notarized. Our 8 year old granddaughter was questioned for a few minutes in London one year about who she was traveling with and I thought we were going to have to show the form. However she proceeded to talk his ear off about how she was going to have her own bedroom and we were going to musicals, etc and he just smiled at all of us and said have a nice holiday.

You should also have a notarized letter specifically authorizing you to take her out of the US, not just saying she can travel with you snd get medical care if needed.

Definitely obtain the letter with notarized signatures of both parents before travel. My daughter needed her ex-husband to complete one before she took them abroad, even though he was okay with the trip. She downloaded the form, but I don't remember which site she used. It didn't cost her anything. Her ex had to pay for a notary.

yes the notorized form includes WHERE you are going, when and with whom and their home address
AND the names and address of both parents.

Hi, I would highly recommend that you read Joe’s article, and ignore all the other advice here. It’s not that it’s bad advice, it’s just that every country is different and what you need to do is look at the first article Joe linked to and follow those rules.

With all due respect, no one here is an expert on this subject. I’m not even an expert and I’m a retired divorce attorney, and have drafted quite a few documents for my clients for this specific purpose. However, the first thing we did was check the rules of the country or countries they were visiting. Only then did I put together a document with language that pertained to each country. Every country is different.

A lot of my friends here in Israel have taken their under-18 grandchildren to European countries without their parents and without any paperwork, just passports, which leads me to think it's not a European issue, but rather an American one?

Joe's doc is for EU residents.

When my son, a non-EU resident, brings our granddaughter to visit without our DIL, they follow the info on the French Consulat website for visitors to Metropolitan France, even though everyone is a citizen. Both parents sign a notarized letter.

Read the Consulate websites of the counties you're visiting and follow that. Mona and Janet, who have done this many times, had it covered...unless Azerbaïdjan or Ukraine are on your itinerary.

Chani--No, it's universal in divorcing families where a foreigner wants to go home. Once they've taken the kids, it's nearly impossible to get them back. Courts keep them in the country, even where I live.

Back in the 1980s a US woman I knew lost her twins when her French husband took them to France on vacation and never returned. People don't realize these things when they enter an international marriage and it goes sour.

I have taken youth groups with me. I always required a signed notarized statement from both parents (custodial, non-custodial etc) giving me permission to travel and seek medical attention. If we could not get the non-custodial we did have some steps we followed to make sure we had the appropriate documentation in the event of questions. (No one ever asked but ...)

This is one of those things where you almost never need the paperwork but if you do and don't have it, it could spell disaster. I would suspect that they make a judgment when they see people with a child. Very young kids or kids of a different race than the person with them probably get more scrutiny and perhaps a younger parent with kids (who might be a non-custodial divorced parent) might also get more scrutiny. Our grandchild was 12, looks like mine, and was obviously enjoying being with the grandparents and no one questioned us.

From what I could find, it wasn’t necessary for Italy. But I’m in Italy with my daughter and niece. I have notarized forms from my daughter’s dad and nieces parents (my sister) . Our layover was in Reykjavík and the immigration officer asked for them.
This was today.

Bets, the OP said she is traveling to Paris so the EU instructions should work for them. If they travel to the UK, here are UK regulations: https://www.gov.uk/permission-take-child-abroad

BTW, I agree that the divorce issue in France and other countries can be messy, but France and most, if not all EU countries are members of the Hague Conference that agrees to respect AND enforce custody and support orders from other Hague countries (including the US). I had a client who had a child with a Frenchman and resided in the US. A support order was initiated here, and then sent to France for enforcement since the father lived there. The court was very good about accepting the order and going through their process. The most difficult thing was trying to figure out how to convert the Euro support order to US dollars.🤣

But regardless it means that if a non-US citizen kidnaps their child and returns to their home country, if it is a member of the Hague conference, the court there will order that the child be returned as long as there is a valid custody order in place. Having said that, logistically it can be difficult and very expensive.

BTW, we never thought about it, never had letters, and often only one of us would bring the kids to see their grandparents. This went on for twenty years. We were lucky.

We took our granddaughters to France and never were asked for any paperwork (which we had). Nevertheless, I agree with Janettravels, "This is one of those things where you almost never need the paperwork but if you do and don't have it, it could spell disaster."

US Department of Homeland Security: Traveling Overseas (with minor children)
https://www.dhs.gov/travel-overseas

All children, including infants, must have their own passport or Trusted Traveler Program document for U.S. entry. Carry documents for traveling with minor children.

If you are escorting a minor child without the parents, have a letter from both parents indicating that you have permission to travel with the minor.

If the child is accompanied by only one parent, the parent should have a note from the child's other parent. For example,
"I acknowledge that my wife/ husband is traveling out of the country with my son/ daughter. He/She/ has my permission to do so."

If a single parent has sole custody, a copy of the court custody document can replace a letter from the other parent.

The notarized consents are not only for entering another country but also for returning to the U.S. I won't go into the details but suffice it to say that the kids and the adult traveling with them had to wait at U.S. immigration for several hours while the legal guardians were located.

The notarized consents are not only for entering another country but also for returning to the U.S.

I wouldn't be surprised if they were mainly if not solely useful for returning to the U.S. I doubt another nation would lend much credence to an American Notary Public.

I would get all documents printed out twice and get both sets notarized. Each grandparent keeps a copy with them.

Let your granddaughter know in advance, that she may be asked questions about her relationship with you, that she is not there under any pressure and that her parents know she is with you. She should know that she is being asked to ensure her safety and not to be scared by it.

Medical insurance may not cover her, outside of the US. May want travel insurance if not.

Your granddaughter can also carry a laminated note card with the name address and phone number of the hotel or place you are staying. It should also have emergency contacts ( yours and parents) phone numbers on it. She can carry it in a small backpack or on a lanyard along with a photocopy of her passport. That way if something happens like being separated from you, she can find someone to help her get back to your lodging.

Travel insurance for kids is really cheap -- definitely get that for the trip.

My wife and I have traveled to Europe with children who are not our children three times.

You want notarized forms signed by both you and your spouse, and the child's legal guardians.

One form is an authorization to travel with the child.

The other is an authorization for medical power of attorney.

Sources linked above are good.

Bring these forms. After three trips with forms, we got lax and traveled without forms last summer. We had never been asked to show forms to anyone on previous trips. But on our flight connection in Iceland, the absolute very last moment on the trip those forms would be important, all of a sudden a major hassle.

In the end we slid through, but better to have the forms. The Icelandic border authority emphasized that you really need them if there's a medical problem.