What form do I need to print off to get father permission for taking my son to USA holiday?

[RocketIceLollie]

Exactly that really. We are going to New York for a short city break in a few weeks time. My son's father is perfectly fine with the trip but what form do I need to print off for him to sign his agreement for our boy going out the country?

There isn’t a specific form however you’re advised to get a letter stating stating “I acknowledge that my wife/partner/ex-wife is traveling to the United States with my son. She has my permission to do so.” Probably also good to add in where you will be staying during the trip as well. You’ll also be well advised to get it notarised by a local solicitor. I did this the first time I took my kid to Turkey without her dad but no one batted an eyelid so never bothered since.

Thank you for responding.

I'm such an anxious person with getting things like this all sorted and organised before. Not liking the idea of paying a solicitor to just overwrite such a letter though. Can it be any other professionals to overwrite it such as a nurse, director of a company, etc, or just a solicitor?

I've never taken anything regarding permission, I've got a different surname to my dd, so I've always take the birth certificate with me just in case, but no one has ever checked before.

You don’t have to get it notarised, it’s just strongly recommended. Border force in the US are pretty strict. Perhaps as a middle ground if you have a friend or neighbour who is in a professional position who could witness it.

I’m a solicitor and I just use wording as below. Attach the birth certificate of the child (demonstrates who has parental responsibility) and a picture of the fathers passport to demonstrate his ID. You could the letter witnessed and the copy passport certified but it shouldn’t be an issue. There’s no formal requirement in law. Add contact details so border control can check with him if needed.
LETTER OF CONSENT FOR MINOR TO TRAVEL

Child: [name] born [date of birth]
Persons with parental responsibility: [parents’ names]
Authorisation for: [name of parent travelling]

I am the father of [child name] and give permission for him to travel with [name of parent travelling] to [country] from [date] to [date].

Attached:

• Copy of child’s birth certificate
• Copy of my passport to demonstrate my ID.

Signed:

Dated:

[contact details]

Thank you very much. This is awesome. Just the sort of explaining of the rules and a template I was looking for. Thank you.