Vacation ideas

Parents can sometimes get caught in the trap of thinking that their small child is immune to the law and that they do not have to worry about silly things like passports. If there is an international family trip planned in the near future, that philosophy is going to have to be rethought. However, there is no need to hit the panic button, because an expedited children’s passport is all that is needed.

Just because they are a child, does not mean that there are not travel laws that pertain to them. Any family that is getting ready to travel aboard would do well to get on the Internet and do some research on express pass port rules and regulations. For the record, anyone traveling abroad needs to have a passport.

However, children and infants are subject to specific passport law. For example, as of February 1st, 2008, all U.S. citizens under the age of sixteen must obtain written consent from both parents or guardians to obtain a passport. This law is designed to minimize international child custody disputes. The theory behind this law is that if one parent is trying to sneak a minor out of the country, it will be impossible to do so without the other parent finding out.

This special passport law means that an additional step has been added to the process, but other than that, the process is pretty similar to adults. Once the consent forms have been signed, the application process will go as a new passport application would. Just make sure that the consent form is properly done so that there will be no snags as the process moves forward.

Everyone has to have their photo taken for a passport before they apply, and a child is no different. To speed things up, it may be best to go to an establishment that takes the passport photos right on the spot and returns them right away. There are plenty of one-hour photo shops in malls that do this express passport service and the photos can be returned before the applicant finishes their shopping.

Before actually heading to the local passport center, make sure the consent form is filled out properly and that both parents have signed it. If not, the application will be refused and it is back to square one. Believe it or not, this is the reason that many parents end up having to get an expedited passport for their child. By the time they get everything together, the trip is right around the corner.

The normal process of a passport is around two months. If the trip is going to happen inside of that time frame, it is best to pay the $60 to get the expedited service that will have the passport back in about three weeks. If that is still not quick enough, there are other services that are more expensive that will create an even quicker turnaround time.

When traveling abroad, it is best to have all the ducks in a row so that there are no issues at the last second. However, it is perfectly understandable to see how a child’s passport could slip the mind of the parents that they would need to get an expedited passport for a child. When this happens, know that there are several measures in place to make the express pasport process as easy as it can be with the added pressure of a short turnaround time.