Law governing travel consent letters

I want to take a grandchild on a cruise. Mom is agreeable and willing to sign consent letter however Dad is missing ..possibly incarcerated someplace. I am having trouble finding an attorney who understands the consent from the absentee parent issue. Does anyone how to find the law which covers this sort of thing so I can steer the attorney in the right direction?

Thanks

Marcia

Hubby & I just took 6 grandkids on a cruise (4 different last names) -- 1 child had a passport, rest had birth certificates. I had 3 teens drivers licenses with their BC. Also had notarized permission letters from each parent which the cruise line copied at check-in. The cruise check-in clerk and supervisor quickly reviewed each to make sure I had a paper for each child and that it was an orig signature and a notary stamp.

For 1 granddaughter I did not have her father's signed permission (I actually forgot to carry it). Her parents are divorced. Also for a grandson I did not have his father's signed permission because the father is in another state. For another granddaughter, I had her stepmother's signature but did not have the birth mother who also lives in another state and only comes around twice a year. The people with the cruise line did not question why I did not have those signatures -- maybe they didn't notice. Am telling us this to say that I don't think it will matter that you don't have the father's signature. (Especially if the mom has full custody!)

This was our THIRD time to take the grandkids on a cruise -- we have been on Royal Carib, HAL & Carnival with the grandkids and I used same format & same parents to sign off.

Here is my permission letter form:

CONSENT FOR MINOR CHILDREN TO TRAVEL

Date: ___________

WE (name of parents) authorize OUR 3 MINOR CHILDREN (names of children) to travel from (date leaving home) to (date returning home) with THEIR GRANDPARENTS (our names)

• BY CAR to FT. LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA AND

• BY CRUISE SHIP HOLLAND AMERICA’s WESTERDAM from/to FT.LAUDERDALE, FL with stops at (1) GRAND TURK (2) SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO (3) ST. MAARTEN (4) HALF MOON CAY, BAHAMAS AND

• BY CAR FROM FT. LAUDERDALE, FL BACK TO _________ TN.

AND to participate in following activities:

(1) SWIMMING POOLS and OTHER ACTIVITIES on the cruise ship,

(2) EXCURSION at SAN JUAN PUERTO RICO,

(3) RHINO RIDERS at ST. MAARTEN

(4) MARGARITAVILLE at GRAND TURK

(5) HALF MOON CAY PRIVATE ISLAND

(6) Other appropriate activities that my parents would organize and approve of.

In addition, We authorize (OUR NAMES) to consent to any necessary ROUTINE OR EMERGENCY MEDICAL TREATMENT for any of our 3 children during the aforementioned trip.

Signed:____________________________ (Parents sign here)

Parents Address and Parents Phone numbers

NOTARIZATION SECTION: (Use appropriate language for your state)

STATE OF __________ _________ County

Sworn To & Signed Before Me, A NOTARY PUBLIC, On This The ___ Day Of ____________, 2009.

___________________________________ (Notary Public Signature & original Seal)

My Commission Expires on _____________(date).

__________________

Honestly and I know this, with a "dead" beat parent, the other parent needs to go to court and get a termination of rights. This way the child can travel on such things as cruises.

And honestly it is just a good thing to do for other protections in regards to the child. But unless there is paper work both parents have to give permission. In the majority of situations this is not a problem. But sometimes people make big mistakes. Love the child, but protecting the child can be a tad intense.

It's the immigration law for each country you are visiting. You can visit the embassy webpage for each country and read entry/exit requirements. If mom has sole legal and physical custody, you need nothing but the paperwork that states this, and the signed and notarized permission to travel letter from her.

If you can't find dad, you can ask the court to give you permission to go. Suggest you consult a family law attorney. If they don't understand this issue, find someone else, as it's fairly common.

Post#2 has given you an excellent example of the needed consent form.

When we traveled with a minor, we had one parent present, and the other parent had died - we still had to have a death certificate to prove it. I wouldn't just bet on the immigrations officials accepting just one parent's signature.

It sounds like you need a good family lawyer. I'd keep calling until I found someone who knew their stuff.

Good luck!

We had similar issues when we took seven grandchildren on a cruise in January. For six of the children, getting the signed letter of consent was easy, though a hassle due to the kids being in different states.

For the 7th, getting the father's signature was difficult; he was in some kind of a half-way house or substance abuse place in another state and it took some major back-and-forth to get his signature. For one thing, he apparently didn't understand what it was all about and kept sending the papers back signed wrong or unsigned or something. Brain fried by drugs?

We were sailing RCI and right on their website it says 'permission form one parent or guardian', but even so we felt uneasy about not having the letter of consent from all the parents, even those without custody, so the mother kept at this guy until we finally got a letter signed correctly and faxed back. Even that was iffy, as it says, 'original' letter.

At check in they checked all seven kid's birth certificates and letters of consent VERY carefully, matching each child up to each set op papers. It was a big relief that every thing was in order. I could just see one of us being left on the dock with one child while everyone else got to sail.

You need to find a lawyer who understands this and, probably, get a judge to issue you the permission needed. People often have to do this, so it should work out for you.

Keep in mind that while the cruise line may say that it only needs permission from one parent or guardian, the issue is the law of the countries in which you will be porting. Most around the Caribbean have laws designed to prevent parental kidnapping by taking kids into their countries without the other parents' consent.

You may know that the child's dad is a deadbeat, or whereabouts unknown, but there's no way for Mexico to know that that is the truth, kwim? You or one of the child's parents could be engaged in a custody fight with the other, and using the vacation as an opportunity to remove the child from the country.

Agree that the best course of action is a court order granting permission for the travel. Can you look into whether Legal Aid can assist? Even though there are income restrictions, there are often attorneys who volunteer to assist Legal Aid with cases that don't meet their income guidelines. You may be able to get a good referral, and possibly free services.