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Travel with kids might be hard but....

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  • Travel with kids might be hard but....

    Kids travelling without their parents is apparently easy.

    I took my 14 year old daughter to Toronto's Pearson Airport. She checked in, checked her bag, went through security, US customs and boarding with minimal questions and no documentation other than her passport and her boarding pass, all by herself. No one asked any permission from me or her Dad. She was not listed as an unaccompanied minor. Nothing.

    The only thing they asked her for was the address she was going to. Although she gave them the grandparents' US address, it certainly could have been fake. Grandparents' names were never provided. Grandparents met her in the US airport where no one asked her anything either.

    If a teen can figure out how to pay for her ticket (PayPal anyone?) and have access to their passport, they can travel internationally alone.

    Amazing.
    Last edited by SadAndTired; 03-14-2016, 07:15 PM.

  • #2
    This is why child sex-slaves are so easily moved from one country to another. I'd be pretty upset.

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    • #3
      I never thought about the sex trade Arabian. Good point and how sad.

      I was only thinking of runaway kids or adventurous teens causing trouble. She could have gotten thousands of km away without anyone knowing. You hear about teens travelling to meet someone they met on the internet but truly, it was ridiculously easy for her.

      I simply can't believe she made it through US customs without a second glance. She said he asked her when the last time she was in the US and the city she was travelling to. That was it. Gave her back her passport and she went through.

      I am still amazed. So much for notarized letters of permission, etc.

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      • #4
        My daughter always obtains a consent letter to travel out of the country. Even When she pops over for the day(she only lives 30 mins from the border). She has never been asked for any consent letter. Travelled on planes, crossed border on car. Her sons last name is different from hers and he has his own passport.

        I believe they may profile travellers.

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        • #5
          My daughter plays hockey vs teams in the states, in her loop. Cross a few times a year. Other than passport,
          they never ask for anything. Look at the equipment, ask what rink and off you go.

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          • #6
            I've heard of people getting stopped at the border because they didn't have a letter from the other parent, but they were traveling with very young children. Never heard of anyone with a teenager getting stopped. Perhaps border guards think that older kids are less likely to be abducted? But then adolescents are more likely to be trafficked than smaller children ...

            I travel with Kid's passport plus divorce order plus her birth certificate, which clearly links the two of us because it has both our names. Never been asked for a letter from her father (although I have that too).

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            • #7
              Everyone posts that they have "heard" of people getting stopped at the border without permission letters. Has anyone who is reading this forum actually experienced this themselves? I'm just curious

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              • #8
                Not I. My kids have a different last name than i do and we drive across frequently. No one has ever questioned that other than asking for their passport.

                Sent from my SM-G903W using Tapatalk

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by arabian View Post
                  Everyone posts that they have "heard" of people getting stopped at the border without permission letters. Has anyone who is reading this forum actually experienced this themselves? I'm just curious
                  When I was still "with" ex, we decided to take a ferry ride across the river (US/Canada border), as we were visiting my old neck of the woods. People would take ferry rides across all the time (or just ride the ferry without crossing).

                  We didn't even think it would be an issue, but, mistakenly, that was right after new rules kicked in. We were just going for the ferry ride with the kids, but, it ended up being that most everyone in the vehicle (kids included), had different last names, and while we had our ID, we didn't have any of the kids ID (we didn't intend on crossing into US, but were just riding the ferry across, and then back home again).

                  We were questioned. There was no way we would have been able to proceed, and I had to convince the US guards, that we didn't have any intention to actually go into the US that day (besides, turning the vehicle around, and loading it back onto the ferry again). They watched us, to make sure we did get back on the ferry.

                  There were no issues on the Canadian side at all, but it was the US side that was the issue. We had 3 young kids in the vehicle.

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by arabian View Post
                    Everyone posts that they have "heard" of people getting stopped at the border without permission letters. Has anyone who is reading this forum actually experienced this themselves? I'm just curious
                    I travel overseas every year with kids, different last name, never had a question leaving the country. Once however, entering Canada, a custom officer foolishly asked 'is dad waiting for you at the airport?'. Youngest kid answered condescendingly: 'We are divorced".

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                    • #11
                      I once gave the passport of my daughter's stuffed animal (build a bear type) to the american border officer, he wasn't amused... I have never had issues either despite not being white but i am often with others from my family...

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                      • #12
                        I got asked for a letter once, in three times traveling alone with a kid or kids. The letter was not notarized.

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