“Traveling with Children: What You Need to Know About IDs and Consent for International Trips”

The summer holidays are coming up, which usually goes hand in hand with travel activities. This is not a problem for adult travelers, as everyone should have a valid ID. However, traveling with children could be problematic, because the little ones also need an ID card. Important to know: Passports are compulsory for every child, regardless of whether they are babies or 15 years old. A biometric photo of the child is required for the ID card, which is sometimes a challenge for the parents, because the children should be seen with a neutral facial expression in these pictures.

In the future, the child’s ID card must be carried with you when traveling abroad. Children receive the ID card up to the age of twelve, it does not contain any digitized information and the ID card must be signed by children from the age of ten. If children are not traveling abroad with their parents but with other relatives or associations, they even need a declaration of consent signed by their parents or a power of attorney for the trip. Without such a declaration of consent, the journey could already end at the border in some countries, such as Bosnia, Greece, Great Britain, Croatia, North Macedonia, Slovenia or Serbia. Some countries even require an officially certified power of attorney.

In order to avoid problems when entering the country with the child, the declaration of consent according to the foreign office contain the following information: Personal details of the minor, personal details and accessibility of the legal guardians, the planned travel route and the personal details of the accompanying persons.