What travel documents do children need?

The child-specific parts of travel paperwork are the shorter passport validity, the questions asked when surnames differ, and the fact that a child cannot be added to an adult's passport. None of it is difficult, but the consent letter in particular is the sort of thing that is trivial to produce two weeks out and impossible to produce at the check-in desk.

Safety

Step by step

1. Check every child's passport expiry separately.Children's passports are issued for a shorter period than adults', so a family that renewed everything together will not run out together. This is the single most common family travel document problem.
2. Apply for a child's own passport in good time.A child cannot travel on a parent's passport. The photograph rules for babies are specific — nothing else in the frame, no supporting hands, no toys — and getting them wrong is the main cause of delay.
3. Check entry requirements for children specifically.Some destinations require travel authorisations for children of any age, including infants, at the same cost as an adult. Check on the destination's official site rather than assuming under-fives are exempt.
4. Write a consent letter if travelling without the other parent.Signed and dated by the non-travelling parent or parents, naming the child, the dates, the destination and giving their contact details. There is no single required form, but having one turns a difficult conversation into a thirty-second one.
5. Carry evidence of your relationship to the child.Particularly where surnames differ — after a divorce, a remarriage, or where parents were never married. A birth certificate, or a marriage or divorce certificate showing the name change, covers it. A copy is usually enough but check whether the destination wants originals.
6. Check the rules for a grandparent or other adult travelling with a child.Requirements can be stricter again. A letter from both parents, contact details and evidence of the relationship is the minimum; some countries require more.
7. Confirm the airline's own rules for children.Minimum ages for infants, whether an infant travels on a lap or needs a seat, what pushchair and car seat allowance applies, and what identification they ask for. These are set by the carrier and differ substantially between them.
8. Add children to the insurance and declare their conditions.Family policies often include children free, but they still have to be named and their conditions declared for cover to work.

Tips

• Put a reminder in the calendar six months before each child's passport expires. It removes the whole problem permanently.
• Keep the consent letter with the passports rather than in a bag that may be checked in.
• If there is a court order affecting where a child can travel, take a copy. Travelling abroad with a child in breach of an order is a serious matter.

Questions people ask