Travelling abroad with children with different surnames airport security customs

[Mumto2setsoftwins]

Ive just become a member so that i could leave this message. I have read threads before regarding this subject and advice was mixed. So before i went to turkey june 2018 i rang jet 2 to ask them if i would have problems at the airport travelling with my twin babies 16 months having a different surname to me. Jet 2 said no so long as we all checked in together. I dont know why probably mothers instinct but i decided to take their birth certificates anyway. Good job i did because both turkish and british border controll questioned me as to who the babies belonged to. I dont know what would have happened if i couldnt have proved they were mine. I wanted to share this experience so that all you lovely mums are aware that the airports are getting stricter, and if you dont have full birth certificates as i dont for my older twins take tax credit/child benefit letters anything that shows you are the legal guardian xx

Yes, take copy of birth certificate and marriage certificate if you have later changed your name. Happened in Germany to us. it was horrid, although how anyone could accuse us of kidnapping a child who was clinging desperately to me at the time.....

DS (11) and I were both stopped and questioned entering the US this year about our different surnames.

Luckily we had a signed letter from my partner (DSs dad) giving his permission (!) for me to take DA abroad plus a copy of DS birth cert.

I think its a good thing that they are checking, im more annoyed at the poor advice i was given by the airline.

The airline has nothing to do with border/immigration policies though - these could also change at the drop of the hat.

I travel with both my children's full birth certificates. I have never been asked anything on the way out of the UK but on the way back into the uk have had to show the birth certificates 4/5 times. The one other time the children were asked who I was and where we'd been. I am not sure what would happen if we didn't have the birth certificates. I don't get a letter from their dad as we are not together, he has not seen them for over a year, lives overseas himself and has no idea what we are all up to!

This is true the uk border controll told me they are going to get stricter. I still think the airlines should be aware though, or at least give worst case scenario advice, they work at the airport every day, after all who else are we meant to ask.

Plentyoffishnets i find it bizarre! They didnt ask me leaving only coming back.
Whereas turkey didnt ask me entering but on return.
Its backwards. It seems to me the turks are ensuring we are not abducting a turkish child whereas britain are not ensuring we are not abducting a british child only that we are not abducting a foreign child!

I don’t understand why the UK passport agency doesn’t put a note in children’s passports listing their parents’ names. Would make things so much easier as so many people have different surnames these days!

yes kintan - especially as you put that information when filling in the child's passport form! had that argument the first time with a border guard at Calais as o my had the short birth very for one child at the time but prob not a good idea to be arguing with them!!

god I should proof read before posting! that should say I only have the short birth cert for one of my children

had
god!!!

Agree with the parents names should be on the passport. I have kept my maiden name after marriage so may come across this problem in the future, have yet to take them abroad without DH.

I don't c why try r checking in return, they should b checking when ur leaving the country, makes no sense whatsoever

Kintan you are so right. I am raising my DGD plus I am her legal guardian.
I tried to explain this when coming through Gatwick. He then had the nerve to ask me WHY I was raising her.
Yes; I am sure to explain that in front of the child in question

I don't understand why airport officials are so surprised to see women with different names from their children. There are many countries where people must keep their birth names for life so children usually have a different surname from at least one parent. . .

I also don't understand how a difference of names should be so unusual. My children have a different surname to me, but I have nephews with my surname. It doesn't make sense that I could waltz through checks with them but not my own kids, just based on surname alone.