Entering Carribean ports of call with children

[GoGo 2 Three Boys]

I'm not sure if this is the best place to post this question or not. We are booked on Carnival Dream leaving Galveston on July 27. Our ports of call are Cozumel and Yucatan (Progreso). We are traveling with our adult daughter and her three children. According to the Carnival website, our daughter will need a signed/notarized letter from her ex-husband in order for the children to get off the ship in Mexico. (Not required by Carnival but supposedly required by Mexico.) My daughter has sole legal custody of her children; their father abandoned them almost eight years ago. My daughter will have with her a document called "Declaration for Internation Travel with One Legal Guardian" that she has signed/notarized stating she has sole custody and does not legally require the consent of any other person to travel with the children, as well as their passports.

 

Can anyone give us insight if this is sufficient? If not, what else do we need? We are just a week out from the cruise and not sure if we can even locate her ex, let alone if he will sign, notarize, and return to us before we leave home on July 26. (He lives in another state.)  

 

Thank you for any help or guidance you have to share!

Kathy

[JohninDC]

I have never had anyone even look at my driver's license when returning to the ship in Cozumel, although I always carry it and a photocopy of my passport.  I think you will be fine with what you have as long as you have satisfied the cruise line's requirements.

 

enjoy your cruise and welcome to the boards! 😎

[GoGo 2 Three Boys]

Thanks, John. I think it's an issue when getting off the ship, not getting back on. I do think we'll be fine. I appreciate your response!

 

Kathy

[JohninDC]

Happy to help.  Have a great cruise!😎

[nicsmama649]

I am in the same situation with my son. If she takes the court paper work with her she can get her children passports. I always carry my son's passport with us and bring my legal court documents and his birth certificate with me with me and lock them in the safe just in case I would need them. So far I have not needed them and no one has asked. As long as you have passports and ship cards for the children I highly doubt anyone will question anything. I have always sailed with NCL tho, Carnival could be different, but I doubt it.

[GoGo 2 Three Boys]

She was able to get passports for the kids so that's not an issue, fortunately. Thanks for the tip on bringing the court docs that granted her full custody. I appreciate your help!

[travelling_txgal]

I have traveled to Mexico with my minor daughter several times and have never once been questioned, not by Carnival or Mexican officials. I understand the concern though. Your daughter should just make sure she has the proper travel documents, whatever court papers she has, and leave it at that. Try to enjoy your vacation. 

[GoGo 2 Three Boys]

This is what I wanted to hear! Thanks for the message. We’re all feeling good about the situation now and can let go of that stress. My daughter will be armed with all the documentation she has and I know she and her three sweet boys will have a blast! It’s their first cruise and my husband and I are excited to take them. Thank you again. Blessings to you!

[brillohead]

Nobody generally looks at your papers getting off the ship or back on (with the exception of sometimes showing photo ID with your ship card to get back into the secure port area).  If the kids have passports, that's more than enough (since you can't get passports for a minor without either the permission of both parents, or the permission of one parent and the court system via custody papers).

The rules are different for driving or flying into places versus arriving by ship.  If you arrive by air or if you drive into Mexico, you go through Immigration / Customs and your papers are checked one by one. But for cruise ships, you aren't "entering the country" to stay for an indeterminate period of time, but rather just stopping off "in transit" as part of the rest of your cruise. Immigration gets an electronic list of the passengers in advance of the ship's arrival and they check the entire list at once, not one-by-one like they do at an airport or land crossing, so nobody looks at your documents as you get off the ship.

Someone who is kidnapping their children and trying to avoid their home country isn't likely to do that on a cruise that is returning to the place where they started from.  

So, relax and ENJOY THE VACATION with your daughter and grandkids!

[legaljen1969]

On ‎7‎/‎26‎/‎2019 at 4:44 AM, brillohead said:

Nobody generally looks at your papers getting off the ship or back on (with the exception of sometimes showing photo ID with your ship card to get back into the secure port area).  If the kids have passports, that's more than enough (since you can't get passports for a minor without either the permission of both parents, or the permission of one parent and the court system via custody papers).

I was thinking the same thing.  If she was able to get a passport for the children, she should not have any trouble getting off or on the ship.   We have taken my nieces off and on ships before in ports and we are not even their legal guardians. We certainly keep documentation from my brother and sister in law that they are allowed to be with us, but no-one has ever questioned us or asked us for any documentation.   We usually travel on Royal Caribbean but that has been my experience. 

 

I wouldn't offer any specific documentation unless I were asked for it. I always have what we need, but I wouldn't show anything unless I am specifically asked.

Edited July 29, 2019 by legaljen1969
misworded something.