Notarize a child travel consent letter online
When a minor travels with one parent, with grandparents, or with a school group, airlines and border officers often ask for a consent letter from the non-traveling parent or guardians — and they take it more seriously when it is notarized. The parent who stays home can sign it on a video call from anywhere, which is exactly the situation these letters exist for.
What the notarial act is
Travel consent letters are usually notarized with an acknowledgment of the signing parent's signature; some destinations or carriers ask that the parent swear to the contents instead, which is a jurat. If the letter came from a template with a notary block, that block says which act it expects. For U.S. passport applications specifically, the DS-3053 is its own federal form with its own rules — we have a separate guide for it.
Whether a particular office or recipient requires notarization — and in what form — is that office’s decision. We describe the process; the receiving party sets the requirement.
What you need before the session
- The consent letter, filled in but unsigned: child's name, travel dates, destination, who the child travels with
- The signing parent's current government photo ID
- Copies of anything the destination country asks to accompany the letter
- Both parents on the call, or separate sessions, if both must sign
How it works
- 1
Upload
Upload the unsigned document and tell us who signs.
- 2
Verify
Each signer verifies identity with a government photo ID, as state law provides.
- 3
Meet & sign
Meet a commissioned notary on a recorded video call and sign on camera.
- 4
Download or ship
Get the sealed PDF immediately — and we can overnight the original with tracking.
Availability depends on your state’s law — most states authorize online notarization, and our statute-cited comparison of all 51 jurisdictions shows each state’s rules. Notarizations are performed by independent commissioned notaries under the law of their commissioning state.
Common questions
Does the letter have to be notarized to work?
No single rule covers every airline, border, or country — the airline, border authority, or destination asking for the letter decides what it requires. Notarization adds an identity-verified signature and a seal that can be checked, which is why so many destinations ask for it. Check the destination country's requirements when you plan the trip.
The other parent is in a different state. How does that work?
They join a video session from wherever they are, verify identity, sign on camera, and the notarization is performed under the notary's commissioning state's law. You get the sealed PDF right after; if you want paper for the trip, we overnight the original.
Is this the same as the DS-3053 passport consent?
No. The DS-3053 is the U.S. State Department's form for passport applications when one parent can't appear, and it has its own execution rules — our DS-3053 guide covers it. A travel consent letter is the broader document airlines and border officials ask about for the trip itself.
Related
- Guide: DS-3053 passport consent
- Blank federal forms library
- RON laws by state — the statute-cited dataset
SignSealShip is a technology platform, not a law firm or a notary. Nothing here is legal advice, and no statement here means a document is valid or will be accepted — the receiving office decides its own requirements.