Consent to Immigrate for K2 Minor

[Charles_n_Grace 24]

I have seen various templates for Consent Letters, but none quite fit my circumstances.  My fiancé will be travelling to the US a few months before the kids.  I will travel back to the Philippines to accompany them to the US. 

 

Most Consent Letters I've seen is one parent giving the child permission to immigrate with the other parent. What about the child travelling with the stepfather? Should the Consent to Immigrate be one letter, and the mother give another permission for me to travel with the child and also a POA for medical care?

 

My fiancé's daughters will be 19 and 11 at the time we hope to bring them over.

[qtime 24]

TRAVEL CLEARANCE FOR MINORS

A travel clearance is a document issued by the DSWD to a Filipino child (below 18 years of age) traveling abroad alone or with someone other than his/her parents.

WHO NEEDS A TRAVEL CLEARANCE?

• A minor traveling alone to a foreign country ;
• A minor traveling to a foreign country accompanied by a person other than his or her parents.

WHO DOES NOT NEED TRAVEL CLEARANCE?

• All minors other than those cited above, for example:
• A minor traveling to a foreign country with either parent or with his or her solo parent or legal guardian;
• A minor traveling abroad whose parents are in the Foreign Service or living abroad or are immigrants, provided he/she is holding a valid pass such as a dependents visa/pass/identification card or permanent resident visa/pass/identification card which serves as proof that he/she is living with parents abroad and their travel does not constitute child trafficking.

WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS IN SECURING A TRAVEL CLEARANCE?

A. For a minor traveling alone to a foreign country for the first time

1. Duly accomplished application form
2. Photocopy of the Birth Certificate OR the passport of the  minor
3. A written consent of both parents or the solo parent or the legal guardian permitting the minor to travel alone to a foreign country
4. As appropriate, a photocopy of the marriage certificate of the minor’s parents or a photocopy of the certificate of legal guardianship of the minor or in the case of solo parents, a photocopy of the solo parent identification card from the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office or a photocopy of a certification from the Local Social Welfare and Development Office of being a solo parent or Tallaq or Faskh certification from the Shariah court or any Muslim Barangay or religious leader or in the case of an illegitimate minor, a certificate of no marriage (CENOMAR)* from the National Statistics Office (NSO) or in the case of a deceased parent, a photocopy of the death certificate

*Issuance of CENOMAR will take 1-5 days for cases of uncommon
surnames and 1-15  days for common surnames.
* Issuing office of CENOMAR is the National Statistics Office not the Local Civil Registrar.

5.    Two colored passport size photos of the minor taken within the last six (6) months
B. For a minor traveling for the first time with a person other than the parents or legal guardian

1. Duly accomplished application form
2. A photocopy of the birth certificate of minor
3. A written consent of both parents or the solo parent or the legal guardian permitting the minor to travel to a foreign country with a specific person other than them
4. As appropriate, a photocopy of the marriage certificate of the minor’s parents or a certificate of legal guardianship of the minor or in the case of solo parents, a solo parent identification card from the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office or a certification from the Local Social Welfare and Development Office of being a solo parent or a court decree of separation, annulment or divorce, or Tallaq or Fasakh certification from the Shariah court or any muslim barangay or religious leader or in the case of an illegitimate minor, a certificate of no marriage  from the Philippine Statistics Office (formerly National Statistics Office or NSO) in the case of a deceased parent, a photocopy of the death certificate

* Issuance of CENOMAR will take 1-5 days for cases of
uncommon surnames and 1-15 days for common surnames

*Issuing office of CENOMAR is the National Statistics Office not the Local Civil
Registrar

5.    Two colored passport size photos of the minor taken within the last 6 months.
6.    Photocopy of the passport of the traveling companion

“The social worker may require additional documentary requirements during the assessment of the Travel Clearance application to make  sure that no child shall be trafficked and that the child’s best interest and welfare is ensured”

C. In case of illegitimate children who is traveling abroad accompanied by their biological father, they are still required to secure a travel clearance certificate as parental authority is vested only to the mother of the child, per Article 176 of the Family Code of the Philippines.

IS THERE A VALIDITY PERIOD FOR A TRAVEL CLEARANCE?

A DSWD travel clearance is valid for a period of one (1) year from the date of issuance and shall be valid for multiple travels within the validity period, provided the conditions under which the travel clearance was issued have not changed. If a change in condition occurs like a change in traveling companion, a new travel clearance must be obtained.

HOW MUCH IS THE PROCESSING FEE FOR A TRAVEL CLEARANCE ISSUED TO A MINOR?

The DSWD shall collect a processing fee for each travel clearance issued to minors traveling abroad under the following options:

• Php 300.00 with validity of one (1) year.
• Php 600.00 with validity of two (2) years.

WHERE CAN ONE FILE THE APPLICATION?

The application for travel clearance, together with the supporting documents required shall be submitted/filed at anyDSWD Field Office.

Application forms maybe obtained from any DSWD-Field Office or maybe downloaded from the website www.dswd.gov.ph. [click here to download application form in MS Word Format]

• On the appointed date, go to the nearest DSWD Field (regional) office which processed your application to submit the original copy of your supporting documents and pay PhP300.00 per travel clearance certificate. The travel clearance certificate will be obtained thereafter.

[Charles_n_Grace 24]

Wow, @qtime.  Thanks a lot for that.  Will this also come with a document that is acceptable to CBP when we arrive in the US?

[qtime 24]

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

If a child (under the age of 18) is traveling with only one parent or someone who is not a parent or legal guardian, what paperwork should the adult have to indicate permission or legal authority to have that child in their care?

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) strongly recommends that unless the child is accompanied by both parents, the adult have a note from the child's other parent (or, in the case of a child traveling with grandparents, uncles or aunts, sisters or brothers, friends, or in groups*, a note signed by both parents) stating "I acknowledge that my wife/husband/etc. is traveling out of the country with my son/daughter/group. He/She/They has/have my permission."  See our Q&A parental consent.

U.S. citizen children under the age of 19 arriving by land or sea from Canada or Mexico and traveling with a school group, religious group, social or cultural organization or sports team, may present an original or copy of their birth certificate, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, or a Naturalization Certificate.

The group should have a letter on organizational letterhead with:

• The names of the children on the trip and their primary address, phone number, date and place of birth, and name of at least one parent or legal guardian for each child.
• The name of the group and supervising adult(s) such as: School groups, teen tours, vacation groups.
• A written and signed statement of the supervising adult certifying that he or she has parental or legal guardian consent for each child. CBP also suggest that this note be notarized, to easily verify the validity of the parental authorization.
• For frequent border crossers, the letter should not exceed one year. It is recommended to have the letter in English.

While CBP may not ask to see this documentation, if we do ask, and you do not have it, you may be detained until the circumstances of the child traveling without both parents can be fully assessed. If there is no second parent with legal claims to the child (deceased, sole custody, etc.) any other relevant paperwork, such as a court decision, birth certificate naming only one parent, death certificate, etc., would be useful.

Adults traveling with children should also be aware that, while the U.S. does not require this documentation, other countries may have a requirement and failure to produce notarized permission letters and/or birth certificates could result in travelers being refused entry (Canada has very strict requirements in this regard).

 

Here are the US requirements which were updated this April. I believe with the clearances from the Philippines and the child will also be traveling with her 19 year old sister you should not have an issue. Do not be surprised if you get additional questioning at point of entry but if you have all your documentation together you should not have an issue. I would suggest that you have your fiancé do all of the leg work prior to her coming to the usa.

[Charles_n_Grace 24]

Thanks again.  Your information has helped me quite a bit.  She will go to the local DSWD Monday and apply for her Solo Parent ID. With it, we can bypass any consent from the biological father (someone please correct me if I'm wrong). After the Solo Parent ID, she will get the passports for her daughters, then work on the Travel Clearance.

 

Per your advice (and advice of others), she will designate the older sister as the person that is accompanying the minor. I will still travel with them so they are not overwhelmed by getting through the airport and Customs/Immigration. Just in case, I will have her to write 2 sets of consent letters - one for sister and one for me. Heaven forbid that we somehow get separated along the way, but it seems best to be prepared.