Warning..traveling with child not your own

Took 8 year old grandchild on Splendor this last week. Researched Carnival website..it said if not traveling with parents child would need an ORIGINAL letter from parents authorizing travel nothing saying a NOTARIZED one and a birth certificate..nothing about ORIGINAL.

We got a NOTARIZED letter and took copy of certificate. Air travel was fine..embarking was fine..getting off ship to come back thru homeland security was hell!

He questioned authenticity of notary..I guess Idaho’s is different...he said “obviously you didn’t do your homework..we need an original birth certificate and a notarized letter. He even went so far as to go on computer to verify if notary was real. After extensive questioning and scaring granddaughter and being VERY rude and condescending he let us through.

I understand the need for proper paperwork and I went by Carnivals info and did not research more myself...my bad. The children need to be safe..and he was a JERK!

Just want to forewarn anyone taking children on a cruise..do your own research or things could be bad!

you said it best,he was a jerk.

Yes, he was a jerk because according to DHS's own regulations a copy of a birth certificate is fine. I don't know if you made note of his name but you should file a complaint with the CBP Port Director about the way you were treated. If you don't know his name then you should be specific about the day and time you cleared CBP and that should give them enough info to ID him.

There’s at least one jerk in the CBP at every port. Someone who thinks they know everything

I travel with grandchildren and try my best to follow all laws, rules, and regulations.

It's a shame this happened but it's a good warning to others to read, research, and pay attention.

As a genius once said, all's well that ends well.

Safe and happy travels to you.

Yes, he was a jerk because according to DHS's own regulations a copy of a birth certificate is fine. I don't know if you made note of his name but you should file a complaint with the CBP Port Director about the way you were treated. If you don't know his name then you should be specific about the day and time you cleared CBP and that should give them enough info to ID him.

FWIW some places do not give out the original birth certificates. In California we get a ‘true copy’ of the birth certificate in the State database.

FWIW some places do not give out the original birth certificates. In California we get a ‘true copy’ of the birth certificate in the State database.

A certified copy is legally an original.

The government is always right! Right?

sorry to hear of your troubles but yes they can be real jerks, our friend brought her two boys last year on miracle with passports and guy at cbp gave her a ration of crap because no father was present, she explained dad was killed some years ago and she was unable to get letter of authorization from him due to him being dead, guy stated you should have death certificate with you, she said excuse me but I do not make it a habit to travel with my dead husbands death certificate and my boys have valid passports, after about 20 min of this a supervisor came over apologized to her and away they went but not before having to explain fathers circumstance in front of two little boys age 5 and 7

heartless is only way I could explain it

with all due respect, the cbp had some right to ask (should have been nicer and not a jerk) but if you are traveling alone with children, it is recommended that you have proof of some sort that the other parent agrees and they have no idea the children's father died. They are looking for proof that your story is legit. Things like a death certificate, proof of sole custody or a signed note from the absent parent is recommended. otherwise a kidnapper could have just told the same story as you did. They are trying to keep people safe. He was rude and a jerk but the message in this case was within their right.

I just got off a cruise (another line).... Took my 8 year old grandson .... Immigration employee was a jerk as well. My grandson has his mothers last name (son and childs mother not married/together)..... But I did get a notarized letter from son authorizing grandson to travel with us. Like OP...no problem with Airlines and Embarkation, At Customs.... Saw grandsons BC and immediately asked if we had a letter. Which I immediately provided. He then begins asking me my birth date and where I was born??? I am 62 and wife is 61.... Give me a break. I politely replied and he just stared at documents. He wasn't rude but sure took his time eyeing our documents..... 1st time in 20+ cruises I've even had to answer a question!! I expected to be asked for the letter because grandsons surname was different from ours...but my sons name is on BC so...it wasn't a problem. Suggest everyone get a notarized travel authorization letter if traveling with grandchildren and/or childs friends....

What? But all the keyboard warriors have assured everyone no one ever asks for the paperwork suggested by Carnival and by CBP.

We ran into quite the jerk when we first took our Chinese adopted daughter on her first cruise. Apparently I brought the wrong birth certificate. (She has no bc except the one in Chinese and the one from Florida indicating she was born in China). Well that’s the one I took bc it was in English. Apparently I was supposed to bring her chinese paperwork with us. (It was all in Chinese writing) After much condescension, he let us through. We got her American passport right away after that debacle and haven’t had an issue since. All that to say, I think being a condescending jerk is in the job description when applying for customs an immigration jobs.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

From Carnival's Website:

Traveling with a Minor

When traveling with a minor where one parent or both parents or legal guardians are not cruising, we strongly recommend bringing an original signed letter from the absent parent(s) or legal guardians authorizing the minor to travel with you. This will expedite processing by the Department of Homeland Security.

But it also says:

Guests should check with their travel agent and/or government authority to determine the travel

documents necessary for each port of call. Any guest without proper documents will not be allowed to board the vessel and no refund of the cruise fare will be issued. Carnival assumes no responsibility for advising guests of proper travel

People need to take some responsibility for their own travel. This is just like if you are going to travel to another country on a plane.. you need to make sure you understand all the rules and regulations (visas, etc.)

This comes up a lot on CC, about traveling with a child with one or neither parent is present. Everyone always says "don't worry about it" they won't even ask ..... well here is an example of what you can expect if you don't follow the rules and know what you need.

Anyone traveling with a minor child should have an original notarized letter giving express permission to travel with that child (it is also smart to have it state that you have full authority to seek any necessary medical attention for that child too.. because if something happens you may need this too!). Even if one parent is present, and the other is not. They should still have this from the absent parent (unless you have some other legal document stating you don't need it)

In extenuating circumstances when the "other" parent is not in the childs life, you should still have some legal document (such as a court order) that states you have permission to leave the country with the child.

It only takes one "difficult" customs officer to ruin everything!

I just got off a cruise (another line).... Took my 8 year old grandson .... Immigration employee was a jerk as well. My grandson has his mothers last name (son and childs mother not married/together)..... But I did get a notarized letter from son authorizing grandson to travel with us. Like OP...no problem with Airlines and Embarkation, At Customs.... Saw grandsons BC and immediately asked if we had a letter. Which I immediately provided. He then begins asking me my birth date and where I was born??? I am 62 and wife is 61.... Give me a break. I politely replied and he just stared at documents. He wasn't rude but sure took his time eyeing our documents..... 1st time in 20+ cruises I've even had to answer a question!! I expected to be asked for the letter because grandsons surname was different from ours...but my sons name is on BC so...it wasn't a problem. Suggest everyone get a notarized travel authorization letter if traveling with grandchildren and/or childs friends....

To the person that was doing all the talking about kidnapping. So kidnappers now take children in cruises and then bring them back?

I sincerely hope each of you that has had a problem are making a report of your experience because the jerks you encountered do not know their job.

The us has No requirement of any letter. In the Caribbean it is only Mexico that requires a letter and that is only if Mexico is your final destination common sense should tell these jerks they are doing Wrong but they are not hired for brains. Why would you need anything besides citizen ship papers to bring the child back to their own country?

I stand by that no letter notorized or not is needed to take children on a closed loop cruise.

I have mentioned it before, but a lady on here about 10 yr ago was given a warning for not having a passport. If you do a search you will find it with a picture of the official warning she received search for passport warning Galveston and the thread should come up.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

I have to play devil's advocate. How would you feel about these 'jerk' cbp IF your child, grandchild, niece, nephew, etc. were abducted and were 'found'/kept safe because the cbp were doing their jobs and being jerks.

I have to play devil's advocate. How would you feel about these 'jerk' cbp IF your child, grandchild, niece, nephew, etc. were abducted and were 'found'/kept safe because the cbp were doing their jobs and being jerks.

I don't disagree... But its pretty hard kidnapping a child off a cruise ship considering they check you in at all ports and during embarkation. Why would you take a kidnapped child on a cruise and come back in the country with him knowing it would have already been reported to authorities before you arrive back! But thats why I had authorization letter with me. But asking me my date of birth...where I was born, etc.....Was going a bit to far. My grandson and son lives with us ...the address on letter matched our home address. I just felt he was going a little to far since all our documents were in order

Ok, so I was just curious myself and went and looked... right from custom and border protections website...

Can a minor under 18 years of age travel to another country without their parents?

I don't disagree... But its pretty hard kidnapping a child off a cruise ship considering they check you in at all ports and during embarkation. Why would you take a kidnapped child on a cruise and come back in the country with him knowing it would have already been reported to authorities before you arrive back! But thats why I had authorization letter with me. But asking me my date of birth...where I was born, etc.....Was going a bit to far. My grandson and son lives with us ...the address on letter matched our home address. I just felt he was going a little to far since all our documents were in order

its not only kidnapping. it can be where one parent does NOT want the child out of the country and has the right to say no but the other parent/grandparent takes them against one parents wishes ( the mom or the parents of the mom takes the kids but the father who has some rights doesnt want it). They want to see that all is legit

 

The us has No requirement of any letter.

 

 

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

They absolutely recommend it

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/3643/~/children---child-traveling-with-one-parent-or-someone-who-is-not-a-parent-or

if a child (under the age of 18) is traveling with only one parent or someone who is not a parent or legal guardian, what paperwork should the adult have to indicate permission or legal authority to have that child in their care?

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) strongly recommends that unless the child is accompanied by both parents, the adult have a note from the child's other parent (or, in the case of a child traveling with grandparents, uncles or aunts, sisters or brothers, friends, or in groups*, a note signed by both parents) stating "I acknowledge that my wife/husband/etc. is traveling out of the country with my son/daughter/group. He/She/They has/have my permission." See our Q&A parental consent.

 

I stand by that no letter notorized or not is needed to take children on a closed loop cruise.

 

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

You may feel in your opinion a notarized letter is not needed however when taking our granddaughters out of the country we were asked for the letter on three different occasions. Once by Royal, once by Disney and by CBP.

I don’t know what would have happened if I had not produced the letter, but thankfully I didn’t have to find out.

If the cruise line suggests you have a letter it is only prudent to have all the documentation you need.

This is my opinion only.....

We have taken 3 of our grandchildren on cruises. Each time we brought along their passport and a signed and notarized authorization from each parent that they give their permission for the grandchild to be out of the country with us. We have never been asked to show this letter, but will I always bring one? ....yes for my piece of mind.

Yes, he was a jerk because according to DHS's own regulations a copy of a birth certificate is fine. I don't know if you made note of his name but you should file a complaint with the CBP Port Director about the way you were treated. If you don't know his name then you should be specific about the day and time you cleared CBP and that should give them enough info to ID him.

If someone is going to take someone else's child out of the country, or a child in which one of the parents isn't there, that's a big deal. I believe it's that person's responsibility to make sure they have crossed their "T's" and dotted their "I's." And that means going further than reading a paragraph on Carnival's FAQ's. Carnival doesn't control the borders, the U.S. govt. does, so that's where you should ultimately end up.

What? But all the keyboard warriors have assured everyone no one ever asks for the paperwork suggested by Carnival and by CBP.

I don't disagree... But its pretty hard kidnapping a child off a cruise ship considering they check you in at all ports and during embarkation. Why would you take a kidnapped child on a cruise and come back in the country with him knowing it would have already been reported to authorities before you arrive back! But thats why I had authorization letter with me. But asking me my date of birth...where I was born, etc.....Was going a bit to far. My grandson and son lives with us ...the address on letter matched our home address. I just felt he was going a little to far since all our documents were in order

I never said anyone would take a kidnapped child on a cruise. I only said IF a/your child was kidnapped, you would WANT the CBP to be uber scrupulous and cautious. I DO understand the OP's instance was coming INTO the U.S. and not out of .... I was just stating an alternate scenario.

I

I've seen a lot of posts about the minor travel form and have never seen anyone "assure everyone" that "no one ever asks" for it. I've seen plenty of people say they've never been asked for it, but in each of those cases, they've always said they still play it safe and keep taking it with them, and they recommend others do the same.

I have to agree with Elaine. I've followed a lot of posts on this topic and people do make claims that paperwork is not needed.

It has happened in this thread already!

I traveled with my son alone to other countries no letter necessary , I mean it kinda makes sence I never thought I needed a letter but I’ll play it safe and have her sign a notarized letter but this is something that should be addressed before you depart NOT when you disembark

Sent from my iPhone using Forums