My experience: Taking minor out of country

AZB · Jan 7, 2016

I was under the impression that I needed a consent letter from the mom to take out a dominican born baby if I needed to travel without her. So happens I asked the immigration at the airport on a previous trip about the consent letter. The immigration officer told me I needed it as my baby is dominican born and mom is dominican. then he sent me to the main office to get updated info. So I went to the office (at the airport) to confirm what i had heard, to my surprise, they told me the opposite. I do not need a letter of consent to take my dominican baby out of the country because the baby has a US passport. so I insisted that baby lives here with mom who is dominican and baby is also dominican. Again they asked: what passport the kid holds? i replied: american. They repeated: the baby doesn't need a consent letter to leave the country as we are both considered foreigners. But there is one rule: it must not be his/her (minor's) 1st trip out of the country. in the 1st trip, yes I would need a letter but since my kid had traveled (with both mom and dad) 3 times already, I do not need a letter now.
wow, relief. The letter has to be made by a lawyer, with dominican immigration and child services authorization etc. 2000 pesos for immigration fees +lawyer's fees + time and trip to the lawyer's office+ photos and etc.
So i took a chance and took my baby out of the country last month. all went well, no consent letter was even mentioned and we went out of the country without a problem. I do remember Rubiohiguey was mentioning something about a yellow slip which has to be kept for the minor's return to DR. I didn't see any yellow slip or pink slip or anything at all.
So i hope this info will help many people who have the same concerns as I did.
AZB

frank recktenwald · Jan 7, 2016

AZB said:
I was under the impression that I needed a consent letter from the mom to take out a dominican born baby if I needed to travel without her. So happens I asked the immigration at the airport on a previous trip about the consent letter. The immigration officer told me I needed it as my baby is dominican born and mom is dominican. then he sent me to the main office to get updated info. So I went to the office (at the airport) to confirm what i had heard, to my surprise, they told me the opposite. I do not need a letter of consent to take my dominican baby out of the country because the baby has a US passport. so I insisted that baby lives here with mom who is dominican and baby is also dominican. Again they asked: what passport the kid holds? i replied: american. They repeated: the baby doesn't need a consent letter to leave the country as we are both considered foreigners. But there is one rule: it must not be his/her (minor's) 1st trip out of the country. in the 1st trip, yes I would need a letter but since my kid had traveled (with both mom and dad) 3 times already, I do not need a letter now.
wow, relief. The letter has to be made by a lawyer, with dominican immigration and child services authorization etc. 2000 pesos for immigration fees +lawyer's fees + time and trip to the lawyer's office+ photos and etc.
So i took a chance and took my baby out of the country last month. all went well, no consent letter was even mentioned and we went out of the country without a problem. I do remember Rubiohiguey was mentioning something about a yellow slip which has to be kept for the minor's return to DR. I didn't see any yellow slip or pink slip or anything at all.
So i hope this info will help many people who have the same concerns as I did.
AZB

That probably makes the difference then because when I wanted to take my daughter they gave me a hard time at the airport because the papers drawn up and stamped by the lawyer/notary apparently were not the right ones. My daughter has a German and Panamanian passport.
Told my daughter to start crying which she did (my tiguere

) and finally they let us board the plane, we were the last ones.

AZB · Jan 7, 2016

frank recktenwald said:
That probably makes the difference then because when I wanted to take my daughter they gave me a hard time at the airport because the papers drawn up and stamped by the lawyer/notary apparently were not the right ones. My daughter has a German and Panamanian passport.
Told my daughter to start crying which she did (my tiguere ) and finally they let us board the plane, we were the last ones.

They are waiting on you to pay them a bribe. When this didn't work, they just let you go. They could not hold you up legally.
Azb

AZB · Jan 7, 2016

AZB said:
They are waiting on you to pay them a bribe. When this didn't work, they just let you go. They could not hold you up legally.
Azb

.oh it was her 1st time leaving the country. Got it.

Mauricio · Jan 7, 2016

My wife just made a trip with two of our children to the USA and we did the whole process. Good to know I don't need to do it again for them.

RV429 · Jan 8, 2016

I can confirm the AZB experience. Only the first time did we have any issues. Now it is a non-issue. They do now give us a small slip of paper when entering which we turn in on leaving. No hassles at any time since the first time. U.S. Passport holder has rights.

josh2203 · Jan 8, 2016

I recall the first time we traveled abroad, from POP to FRA, a direct flight: At check-in, having our tickets and all three passports (my EU-one, my wife and son with DR passports with Schengen visas) in front of him, the official looked up and asked us if we had a permission to take the boy out of the country. I looked at him for a bit in silence, and told that look at us, the parents, right here, and compare the names in the passports.

The guy looked down again, said not one word more, and quickly handed us our boarding passes and directed us to the security line...

AZB · Jan 8, 2016

josh2203 said:
I recall the first time we traveled abroad, from POP to FRA, a direct flight: At check-in, having our tickets and all three passports (my EU-one, my wife and son with DR passports with Schengen visas) in front of him, the official looked up and asked us if we had a permission to take the boy out of the country. I looked at him for a bit in silence, and told that look at us, the parents, right here, and compare the names in the passports.

The guy looked down again, said not one word more, and quickly handed us our boarding passes and directed us to the security line...

I wonder how do they know who is the mother? My son has only my middle and last name. no mother's name in his full name ( dominicans have mom's last name as well). so when I was with my son, his mom and myself at the immigration last year. when we finished processing, I asked the officer: how does he know this woman is the mother of the child? I caught him off guard. he hesitated a bit then told me, he knows because she is in the system (computer). I doubt it very much. I have a feeling, anyone can take his child and then take along any woman who could pass for his mom and just go through the immigration without the consent letter. I have no desire or need to do this but I am afraid it can be done.
AZB

Mauricio · Jan 8, 2016

AZB said:
I wonder how do they know who is the mother? My son has only my middle and last name. no mother's name in his full name ( dominicans have mom's last name as well). so when I was with my son, his mom and myself at the immigration last year. when we finished processing, I asked the officer: how does he know this woman is the mother of the child? I caught him off guard. he hesitated a bit then told me, he knows because she is in the system (computer). I doubt it very much. I have a feeling, anyone can take his child and then take along any woman who could pass for his mom and just go through the immigration without the consent letter. I have no desire or need to do this but I am afraid it can be done.
AZB

If born in DR they're Dominicans and will have both last names. Only one of my children have a Dominican passports so I have to bring birth certificates always to show they don't need to pay 'estadia' when leaving. The birth certificate shows the mothers name ofcourse also.

In our case two of our children have a different last name in their Dutch passports than the other two for having been born in the DR. The two born in the Netherlands only have my last name and the two born here have both mine and my wife's (in their Dutch passports).

AZB · Jan 8, 2016

Mine was born in DR and his mom is dominican with dominican passport with US visa. My kid's US passport only shows my middle and my last name. no mention of mom's last name anywhere. In US passport, the place of birth is listed. so dominican immigration knows he was born in DR. even-though I always carry a copy of his birth certificate, I have never been asked to show it (all 4 trips). So in my case, I was able to just go though with him as foreigners at the immigration (airport). when we return, they see his place of birth and again he is allowed in as a dominican. I just love this system. hahaha.
so if someone who has a kid with american passport with only father's last name, how does the dominican immigration know who the real mother is? any woman can accompany the guy and take the kid out of the country.
AZB

josh2203 · Jan 8, 2016

AZB said:
Mine was born in DR and his mom is dominican with dominican passport with US visa. My kid's US passport only shows my middle and my last name. no mention of mom's last name anywhere. In US passport, the place of birth is listed. so dominican immigration knows he was born in DR. even-though I always carry a copy of his birth certificate, I have never been asked to show it (all 4 trips). So in my case, I was able to just go though with him as foreigners at the immigration (airport). when we return, they see his place of birth and again he is allowed in as a dominican. I just love this system. hahaha.
so if someone who has a kid with american passport with only father's last name, how does the dominican immigration know who the real mother is? any woman can accompany the guy and take the kid out of the country.
AZB

Good points, it?s definitely a good idea always to carry birth certificates around when traveling, we always have original marriage certificates as well, as once my wife was stopped at the Schengen border, as I think the lamination of her photo in her passport looked strange to the officials. It took three officials to check the passport.

My son has 2 first names (including one middle name) and two surnames. First one from me, the second one inherited from my father-in-law as my wife?s first last name, as per the Spanish rules. He also has a DR-passport and a European one, but with exactly the same name all over. So his EU-passport also carries my wife?s first last name as his second last name. I have always assumed that that would be the only/first clue that it?s is my wife?s son. Nobody has ever questioned that though...

I don?t recall if printing the two last names was automatic with his DR-passport though.

jimmythegreek · Jan 8, 2016

AZB said:
I was under the impression that I needed a consent letter from the mom to take out a dominican born baby if I needed to travel without her. So happens I asked the immigration at the airport on a previous trip about the consent letter. The immigration officer told me I needed it as my baby is dominican born and mom is dominican. then he sent me to the main office to get updated info. So I went to the office (at the airport) to confirm what i had heard, to my surprise, they told me the opposite. I do not need a letter of consent to take my dominican baby out of the country because the baby has a US passport. so I insisted that baby lives here with mom who is dominican and baby is also dominican. Again they asked: what passport the kid holds? i replied: american. They repeated: the baby doesn't need a consent letter to leave the country as we are both considered foreigners. But there is one rule: it must not be his/her (minor's) 1st trip out of the country. in the 1st trip, yes I would need a letter but since my kid had traveled (with both mom and dad) 3 times already, I do not need a letter now.
wow, relief. The letter has to be made by a lawyer, with dominican immigration and child services authorization etc. 2000 pesos for immigration fees +lawyer's fees + time and trip to the lawyer's office+ photos and etc.
So i took a chance and took my baby out of the country last month. all went well, no consent letter was even mentioned and we went out of the country without a problem. I do remember Rubiohiguey was mentioning something about a yellow slip which has to be kept for the minor's return to DR. I didn't see any yellow slip or pink slip or anything at all.
So i hope this info will help many people who have the same concerns as I did.
AZB

So if the Child is born in the Dominican Republic with a Dominican Mother And U.S. Father, if both parents leave with the child through the airport in DR for the first time, do they still need this consent letter with their documents?

frank recktenwald · Jan 8, 2016

jimmythegreek said:
So if the Child is born in the Dominican Republic with a Dominican Mother And U.S. Father, if both parents leave with the child through the airport in DR for the first time, do they still need this consent letter with their documents?

Off course not, the parents are present duhhhh

AZB · Jan 8, 2016

jimmythegreek said:
So if the Child is born in the Dominican Republic with a Dominican Mother And U.S. Father, if both parents leave with the child through the airport in DR for the first time, do they still need this consent letter with their documents?

As frank pointed out. No. the letter is only needed if the child is traveling with one or no parents at all. if the child has a dominican passport then he will always need a letter from the parent who is not accompanied. in my case my child has a US passport but he is born in dominican republic and has dominican mom. this was not his 1st trip out of the country so the letter was not needed as he was considered a foreigner.
Remember, if both parents are accompanying the minor then no letter is needed regardless of which passport he is carrying (dominican or US or european etc).

AZB

tavarez1982 · Jan 16, 2016

Ok...

I am English... My son was born here... He has Dominican and uk passport...

I want to go to England later this year for him to meet my family and friends however I am not in contact with his dad. His dad has never paid maintenance and not had regular contact with my son...

Is there any way I will be able to travel with my son without permission however we not travelled before

Bigocean · Jan 16, 2016

tavarez1982 said:
Ok...

I am English... My son was born here... He has Dominican and uk passport...

I want to go to England later this year for him to meet my family and friends however I am not in contact with his dad. His dad has never paid maintenance and not had regular contact with my son...

Is there any way I will be able to travel with my son without permission however we not travelled before

Your son should be able to leave with his UK passport alone, no permission should be required. I do this frequently with my children using their foreign passport. As noted above, if you use his Dominican passport, then you will need the letter from the father, not with the UK (foreign) passport.

AZB · Jan 18, 2016

tavarez1982 said:
Ok...

I am English... My son was born here... He has Dominican and uk passport...

I want to go to England later this year for him to meet my family and friends however I am not in contact with his dad. His dad has never paid maintenance and not had regular contact with my son...

Is there any way I will be able to travel with my son without permission however we not travelled before

you may have the problem 1st time leaving the island. I don't know if UK passport shows the place of birth. In US passport the place of birth is printed so the dominican immigration knows he is born in DR and no tourist card is needed when he returns.
Now if your child is not declared by the Dominican dad and the child does not have his last name then maybe no letter is needed. but if he did declare him as his child then he may need the consent letter only the 1st time leaving this island without dad being present on the trip.
AZB

RV429 · Jan 18, 2016

I very intentionally made sure my daughters name on her U.S. Birth Abroad Certificate and her Passport have only my last name. None of her mothers names, none. We travel the world with U.S. passports and only once had a hassle and that was the first time leaving the DR.

Mauricio said:
If born in DR they're Dominicans and will have both last names. Only one of my children have a Dominican passports so I have to bring birth certificates always to show they don't need to pay 'estadia' when leaving. The birth certificate shows the mothers name ofcourse also.

In our case two of our children have a different last name in their Dutch passports than the other two for having been born in the DR. The two born in the Netherlands only have my last name and the two born here have both mine and my wife's (in their Dutch passports).

AZB · Jan 18, 2016

RV429 said:
I very intentionally made sure my daughters name on her U.S. Birth Abroad Certificate and her Passport have only my last name. None of her mothers names, none. We travel the world with U.S. passports and only once had a hassle and that was the first time leaving the DR.

yes, this is exactly what I've heard also. The 1st time leaving with the kid without the other parent can be troublesome in Dominican republic airport immigration. The rest of the times it's not a problem.
AZB

rubio_higuey · Jan 18, 2016

I wrote about this here:
http://dr1.com/forums/showthread.php/151404-New-exit-procedure-leaving-with-minors

Fortunately, last December exit - no problems whatsoever (and I did take effort to go to the airport two days before the trip to chat with the general supervisor to make sure things had not changed).

Now they are doing the blue slips again upon child's entry (got one last week), so exiting should not be an issue anyway.

Plus second and further exit - http://dr1.com/forums/showthread.ph...-with-minors?p=1595313&viewfull=1#post1595313
and my last year's reentry and inquiry with the supervisor (after having the problematic exit in post #1)
http://dr1.com/forums/showthread.ph...-with-minors?p=1595750&viewfull=1#post1595750

My experience: Taking minor out of country

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