Relating to international travel of one parent w/kids

Lizzard Woman's post is timely as we've been dealing with this lately.
Is the fact that they are US citizens relevant? Do the agents care
about non-US citizens returning to their country of origin?

I understand the need for an authorized letter from the non-travelling
parent with regards to international travel for American citizens
leaving the US. However, the situation I'm concerned with is this:

My BIL, his wife and their 3 children are Swiss citizens, and will be
travelling from Switzerland to the US shortly. However, their oldest
daughter has a different last name (she is the step-child of BIL). It
states clearly in her passport that her mother is legal custodian of
their daughter. They travel all over Europe with no problems. DH keeps
insisting that this statement in the passport is sufficient. However,
I keep arguing they'd be wise to have a notarized letter from the
girl's father and that it may be useful when they leave the US to
return to Switzerland. Problem is, getting such a letter notarized in
Switzerland is not as simple a process as it is in the US - it is
expensive and requires an appointment with a legal authority which is
often difficult to get in a short time.

So - any non-US citizens with kids of different last names leave the
US recently to return to their home country? Any problems?

Thanks

XOR wrote:

Lizzard Woman's post is timely as we've been dealing with this lately.
Is the fact that they are US citizens relevant? Do the agents care
about non-US citizens returning to their country of origin?

snipped for brevity.

So - any non-US citizens with kids of different last names leave the
US recently to return to their home country? Any problems?

Thanks

Ah, I just added my personal experience to the other thread :-)

I am non-US and have travelled between the UK and the US 3 times with my
son without my DH. I never got round to changing my passport to my
married name so my son does not have my name.

I have never been asked about my son's father or why we have different
names. I don't see why having the same name would make much difference
anyway.

Mary Ann

As other people have pointed out, the purpose for requiring
these letters is to prevent child abductions by noncustodial
parents. The United States (and dozens of other countries)
is a signatory to a treaty that obligates the coutry to
attempt to reduce the incidence of international child
abduction.

Different countries have taken this to different levels (if
travelling to Brazil without both parents, for exemple,
prior to stepping on a plane you have to have a notarized
letter that has been authenticated by the Brazilian embassy
and translated into Portugese).

There's a great summary of what is needed for a US citizen
to enter any foreign country at the following website run by
the US Department of State:

http://travel.state.gov/foreignentryreqs.html

The entry for Canada says:

Passport or proof of U.S. citizenship and photo ID required.
Minors (under 16) traveling alone or in someone else’s
custody must present written authorization, signed before a
notary, from the parent(s) or guardian. Visas are not
required. Canadian immigration officials at ports of entry
will issue persons planning to stay longer than 180 days a
visitor’s record. Anyone with a criminal record (including a
DWI charge) should contact the Canadian Embassy or nearest
Consulate General before travel. U.S. citizens entering
Canada from a third country must have a valid passport. For
student or business travel, check with the Canadian Embassy,
501 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20001
(202/682-1740) or nearest Consulate General: CA
(213/346-2701), MI (313/567-2085), NY (212/596-1700 or
716/858-9501), or WA (206/443-1375). Internet:
www.canadianembassy.org

Hope this helps.

--Chris

XOR wrote:
Lizzard Woman's post is timely as we've been dealing with this lately.
Is the fact that they are US citizens relevant? Do the agents care
about non-US citizens returning to their country of origin?

I understand the need for an authorized letter from the non-travelling
parent with regards to international travel for American citizens
leaving the US. However, the situation I'm concerned with is this:

My BIL, his wife and their 3 children are Swiss citizens, and will be
travelling from Switzerland to the US shortly. However, their oldest
daughter has a different last name (she is the step-child of BIL). It
states clearly in her passport that her mother is legal custodian of
their daughter. They travel all over Europe with no problems. DH keeps
insisting that this statement in the passport is sufficient. However,
I keep arguing they'd be wise to have a notarized letter from the
girl's father and that it may be useful when they leave the US to
return to Switzerland. Problem is, getting such a letter notarized in
Switzerland is not as simple a process as it is in the US - it is
expensive and requires an appointment with a legal authority which is
often difficult to get in a short time.

So - any non-US citizens with kids of different last names leave the
US recently to return to their home country? Any problems?

Thanks

"Christopher Ballard" wrote in message
...

(snip)

| The entry for Canada says:
|
| Passport or proof of U.S. citizenship and photo ID required.
| Minors (under 16) traveling alone or in someone else’s
| custody must present written authorization,

(snip)

As I read this, I think it refers to some *OTHER* than a parent. In my
case, I am the parent yet they still asked for a letter.

sharon

Christopher Ballard wrote in message ...
As other people have pointed out, the purpose for requiring
these letters is to prevent child abductions by noncustodial
parents. The United States (and dozens of other countries)
is a signatory to a treaty that obligates the coutry to
attempt to reduce the incidence of international child
abduction.

Different countries have taken this to different levels (if
travelling to Brazil without both parents, for exemple,
prior to stepping on a plane you have to have a notarized
letter that has been authenticated by the Brazilian embassy
and translated into Portugese).

There's a great summary of what is needed for a US citizen
to enter any foreign country at the following website run by
the US Department of State:

http://travel.state.gov/foreignentryreqs.html


Thanks for the link, very helpful for US citizens.

However, I was hoping for some information for people *other* than US
citizens. I didn't find the equivalent on relevant Swiss websites, but
perhaps I'm not looking closely enough.

While I am sure they will have no trouble leaving Switzerland, the
security measures in Europe on US-bound flights are extreme at the
moment - extra questioning, multiple passport checks, body checks as
well. And then there's entry into the country. Finally, there's exit
from the US, but I suspect that will be ok as they're all Swiss
citizens.

Any Swiss folks out there?

btw - I do think these policies are reasonable to a certain extent. I
do wonder how well they work, and how you deal with it if one parent
is non-existant? I guess for most US citizens it's irrelevant since
they never leave the US.

"XOR" wrote in message
om...
Christopher Ballard wrote in message
...
As other people have pointed out, the purpose for requiring
these letters is to prevent child abductions by noncustodial
parents. The United States (and dozens of other countries)
is a signatory to a treaty that obligates the coutry to
attempt to reduce the incidence of international child
abduction.

Different countries have taken this to different levels (if
travelling to Brazil without both parents, for exemple,
prior to stepping on a plane you have to have a notarized
letter that has been authenticated by the Brazilian embassy
and translated into Portugese).

There's a great summary of what is needed for a US citizen
to enter any foreign country at the following website run by
the US Department of State:

http://travel.state.gov/foreignentryreqs.html


Thanks for the link, very helpful for US citizens.

However, I was hoping for some information for people *other* than US
citizens. I didn't find the equivalent on relevant Swiss websites, but
perhaps I'm not looking closely enough.

While I am sure they will have no trouble leaving Switzerland, the
security measures in Europe on US-bound flights are extreme at the
moment - extra questioning, multiple passport checks, body checks as
well. And then there's entry into the country. Finally, there's exit
from the US, but I suspect that will be ok as they're all Swiss
citizens.

Any Swiss folks out there?

btw - I do think these policies are reasonable to a certain extent. I
do wonder how well they work, and how you deal with it if one parent
is non-existant? I guess for most US citizens it's irrelevant since
they never leave the US.
I assume you keep a copy of the custody order or death certificate for the
other parent. I know that we had a lot of documentation suggested for travel
to Canada that we never needed.

"lizzard woman" wrote in message news:dCAIc.81379$P7.73094@pd7tw3no...
"Christopher Ballard" wrote in message
...

(snip)

| The entry for Canada says:
|
| Passport or proof of U.S. citizenship and photo ID required.
| Minors (under 16) traveling alone or in someone else’s
| custody must present written authorization,

(snip)

As I read this, I think it refers to some *OTHER* than a parent. In my
case, I am the parent yet they still asked for a letter.

sharon


Sharon,

the reasoning is because there have been many many cases of *parental*
abduction across international borders. Typically, a parent who's a
citizen of another country takes the US citizen child to his home and
then they are out of US jurisdiction. Because of this, such a letter
is required. At least for the last 5 years or so I've seen it in
travel guides for Mexico and Canada.

That doesn't mean some agents aren't lax about it, but it still
applies to *parents.*

My question relates more to non-US citizens entering or leaving the US
(or boarding a US-bound plane in AMS whilst in transit), since I know
they will have no trouble leaving Switzerland.