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Hi I am looking advice from anyone with experience of travelling with children not your own.
I have recently fostered a 16 year old and finally have got him a passport.
I know from reading previous posts that BA require a photo of a parent passport for 16 yo, which in this case doesn’t exist.
I have a letter from SS on headed paper confirming my guardianship. Would this be enough? He is 16 and will turn 17 next month. Anybody know what I can expect at the airport, or what documents I will need? The last thing I want to do is cause him disappointment at the airport.
We have trips to Paris, Barcelona and possibly Asia in the coming months and I’d like to take him with me.
TIAHi @Angela, congratulations to both of you! What a lucky teenager to be going on those trips with you.
I have taken a LAC child on holiday as a respite carer from an early age on UK and European holidays and only ever took the SS letter – and was never even asked for that! I think you’ll be fine – as a 17-year-old he could well be travelling alone anyway by that age.
I don’t recall BA asking for a parent passport, only some form of photo ID for travellers.
Just once, travelling with our own 16-year-old on a separate booking, our son couldn’t do OLCI (at BOS, there were no issues on the way out). When we went to the check-in desk, ground staff said they just wanted to confirm he was with a responsible adult, but we didn’t have to prove we were his parents, just that we were travelling with him.
*I know some countries require parental consent for children to travel, however SS are the legal parents in the case of LAC.
This is great to know. Thank you!!!
I hope you are keeping well 😊
Thanks you, yes – just added a quick note above re parental responsibility! Please tell us about your travels when you get chance 😁
Thank you. I will check individual countries also regards their requirements.
I’m currently at Gran Melia Tenerife celebrating our wedding anniversary. I’m very impressed with the Red Level service. We are using the Amex offer plus a 20% off voucher and birthday upgrade voucher for maximum savings.
The Paris trip is a joint birthday celebration trip for my daughter and foster son to Disneyland. Although there are 12 of us travelling, so a big family trip. As a big fan of rollercoasters, I am probably more excited than the kids.
Te other trips are work trips, but offer the opportunity for some learning/training.
My daughter has never changed her passport despite being married and thus her two kids have a different surname to her on their passports. It’s much more common than you think..
She had a notorised letter from the father just in case that was never required.
Thanks Roberto
@Angelamc11 I am sending you a BIG HUG. Thanks for being a wonderful person, and I hope all goes well!
Thank you Ihar. That very kind and much appreciated. Thankfully I have a full family helping to give this kid a different life. He’s so excited to be on an aeroplane for the first time, I can’t risk anything going wrong. (He will discover economy class at a later stage lol).
Well done, l’m sure he will have a great time. This doesn’t apply to you but if you have Special Guardianship you can take the child abroad, but someone else can’t without parental permission. We have great nephews who stay with us most school holidays, giving their grandparents ( their Special Guardians) a break.
They are younger so we are heading for a PGL family adventure this summer. Not a typical HFP holiday, but actually fun and makes great memories.@ZoeB we have taken a child who has a special guardianship with someone else every year. We take the special guardians passport photo with a statement giving us consent and providing the flight details etc, as well as the special guardians direct contact details should immigration require it. We also have the special guardianship order with us. Is there somewhere specifically it is mentioned that they cannot travel without the special guardian? Please do point me towards it as it would be helpful to have sight of. Thanks
Thank you Ihar. That very kind and much appreciated. Thankfully I have a full family helping to give this kid a different life. He’s so excited to be on an aeroplane for the first time, I can’t risk anything going wrong. (He will discover economy class at a later stage lol).
I remember I was 11 when I first went on a plane. My son was 3 months on his first.
I would reach out to BA, to see if they can make it more special. We’ve been in the cockpit many times (obv whilst on the ground) and BA pilots are fantastic (captain’s hat on, sat in the seat). Definitely a special moment. They will 100% give you time after the flight – before take-off depends how busy they are.
Have a great time!
I think I found the details on the Grandparents plus website, now renamed as kinship. I think its because the parents retain 49% parental responsibility. I’m currently travelling but will try to find a link later.
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