Travelling with your childs Birth Certificate

Here’s what you need to know.
If you are travelling to another country with a child and are not that child’s parent, or if you and the child have different surnames, you may need to bring extra documents with you to establish your relationship. Despite it being relatively common for parents to have different names to their children, many are unaware that it can cause issues at the airport.

Why does this happen?
To protect against child abduction.

How can you prepare?
Border control staff may ask a few questions to establish your relationship. Carrying evidence of your relationship with the child, or documents explaining the reason for travelling, isn’t compulsory but can speed up the process.

In some instances, a notarized letter is usually required if one parent is flying with the kids and the other parent isn’t present. They may or may not ask for it but it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Above all else, the child’s birth certificate should be with you as it names both parents.