✈️ Travel internationally with your child — without a runaround at the border.
Even when you have sole legal custody (or sole legal decision-making authority, or sole conservatorship), border agents and airline staff are trained to ask: "Where is the other parent's permission?"
This template gives you a clean, professional answer: a notarized consent letter from you, paired with a clear reference to the court order that establishes your authority — so you can move through the airport instead of arguing at the counter.
WHAT'S INCLUDED:
✓ Editable Word document (.docx) — fill in your information on any computer
✓ Print-ready PDF — print, fill by hand, and take to a notary
✓ Step-by-step instructions for sole-custody parents
✓ A built-in section that names your court order, case number, and the specific paragraphs that establish your authority
✓ Section for your own information (legal name, address, ID)
✓ Section for your child (passport, date of birth, citizenship)
✓ Section for the traveling adult — whether that's you, a grandparent, an aunt/uncle, a chaperone, or a group leader
✓ Detailed travel itinerary (dates, destinations, flights, accommodation)
✓ Statement of sole-parent consent + medical authorization language
✓ Built-in notary acknowledgment block (jurat) — works in all 50 U.S. states
✓ A completed example showing what a finished sole-custody letter looks like
✓ An attachments checklist — what to clip behind the letter for the border
✓ FAQ covering Mexico's two-parent rule, apostille requirements, travel-notice clauses, deceased co-parents, terminated parental rights, and unknown whereabouts
WHO THIS IS FOR:
- Parents with sole legal custody or sole legal decision-making authority
- Parents with sole managing conservatorship (Texas)
- Parents whose co-parent's rights have been terminated
- Parents whose co-parent is deceased (paired with the death certificate)
- Parents whose co-parent's whereabouts are unknown despite reasonable search
- Single parents not listed on a court order, where the other parent is not on the birth certificate
WHY YOU NEED THIS:
Border agents do not know your state's family law. They are trained to look for two-parent consent — period. Show up with a notarized letter and a certified copy of your custody order, and you'll save yourself an hour at the counter (and avoid the worst-case scenario of being turned around).
ALSO AVAILABLE — see my shop:
→ Both-Parents Travel Consent Letter (for joint-custody families)
→ Unaccompanied Minor International Travel Letter (for kids flying alone with airline supervision)
→ Travel Consent Bundle (all three letters at a discount)
IMPORTANT — PLEASE READ:
This is an educational template, not legal advice. Sole-custody travel rules vary by state, by destination country, and by the specific language of your custody order. Read your order carefully and consult a family-law attorney for case-specific guidance, especially if you are traveling to a country with a two-parent-consent requirement (Mexico, many EU countries). Digital products are non-refundable.
DELIVERY: Instant digital download. Two files (Word + PDF). US Letter size, formatted for easy printing on any home printer.
✈️ Travel internationally with your child — without a runaround at the border.
Even when you have sole legal custody (or sole legal decision-making authority, or sole conservatorship), border agents and airline staff are trained to ask: "Where is the other parent's permission?"
This template gives you a clean, professional answer: a notarized consent letter from you, paired with a clear reference to the court order that establishes your authority — so you can move through the airport instead of arguing at the counter.
WHAT'S INCLUDED:
✓ Editable Word document (.docx) — fill in your information on any computer
✓ Print-ready PDF — print, fill by hand, and take to a notary
✓ Step-by-step instructions for sole-custody parents
✓ A built-in section that names your court order, case number, and the specific paragraphs that establish your authority
✓ Section for your own information (legal name, address, ID)
✓ Section for your child (passport, date of birth, citizenship)
✓ Section for the traveling adult — whether that's you, a grandparent, an aunt/uncle, a chaperone, or a group leader
✓ Detailed travel itinerary (dates, destinations, flights, accommodation)
✓ Statement of sole-parent consent + medical authorization language
✓ Built-in notary acknowledgment block (jurat) — works in all 50 U.S. states
✓ A completed example showing what a finished sole-custody letter looks like
✓ An attachments checklist — what to clip behind the letter for the border
✓ FAQ covering Mexico's two-parent rule, apostille requirements, travel-notice clauses, deceased co-parents, terminated parental rights, and unknown whereabouts
WHO THIS IS FOR:
- Parents with sole legal custody or sole legal decision-making authority
- Parents with sole managing conservatorship (Texas)
- Parents whose co-parent's rights have been terminated
- Parents whose co-parent is deceased (paired with the death certificate)
- Parents whose co-parent's whereabouts are unknown despite reasonable search
- Single parents not listed on a court order, where the other parent is not on the birth certificate
WHY YOU NEED THIS:
Border agents do not know your state's family law. They are trained to look for two-parent consent — period. Show up with a notarized letter and a certified copy of your custody order, and you'll save yourself an hour at the counter (and avoid the worst-case scenario of being turned around).
ALSO AVAILABLE — see my shop:
→ Both-Parents Travel Consent Letter (for joint-custody families)
→ Unaccompanied Minor International Travel Letter (for kids flying alone with airline supervision)
→ Travel Consent Bundle (all three letters at a discount)
IMPORTANT — PLEASE READ:
This is an educational template, not legal advice. Sole-custody travel rules vary by state, by destination country, and by the specific language of your custody order. Read your order carefully and consult a family-law attorney for case-specific guidance, especially if you are traveling to a country with a two-parent-consent requirement (Mexico, many EU countries). Digital products are non-refundable.
DELIVERY: Instant digital download. Two files (Word + PDF). US Letter size, formatted for easy printing on any home printer.
