Ygtjki

I will be flying with my 5 year old daughter without the mother to Mexico from Germany with transit in the United States. Her grandmother on her mom's side will also be traveling with us.

I was born in Mexico and have acquired German citizenship and kept the Mexican one. I will be traveling with my German passport. I am separated from the mother (she is German; we were never married), but I still have a good relationship with her. My daughter was named according to Mexican law, so her last name is my first last name and her mother's (maiden) last name (to give an example with a fake name: Ana Maria González Müller). Something to note is that the mother has since married someone else and took his name, so her last name is no longer the one on my daughter's last name.

I bought the ticket through Lufthansa but I believe the airline will be United Airlines.

My question is: Is there something I should consider while traveling with my daughter regarding boarding the plane, going through customs or similar? Should I get a signed letter from the mother or something? I will be for sure carrying her birth certificate. What else can I do or take with me?

Edit:
-The mother and I have shared custody.
-To clarify, I will be entering Mexico with with my Mexican passport as it is required by Mexican law. My daughter has never been to the Mexican consulate in Germany and hence has no Mexican passport or birth certificate.

Update: We will be writing a letter of consent in English, German and Spanish, and we will go to the city hall to get the mom's signature notarized

Thank you

• If you do not have sole custody, get a letter from the mother stating that she has no objection.


• The child's passport.


• Possibly a transit visa for all concerned.

Follow-Up: As far as Germany is concerned, the letter need not be notarized but it should contain the current contact details of the other legal guardian.

US authorities are generally very aware of potential 'abductions' of children by one parent (against the consent of the other parent); especially for international travel.

Now that should not affect you much, as you are not taking the child out of the US, but simply 'transiting', but it could be they ask you.

The strong recommendation for the US is to have a signed letter from the other parent; if you want to avoid trouble, this would be a good idea to bring.

I'm surprised no one mentioned it but in addition to the documentation that @o.m. listed, I would also include a copy of the child's birth certificate. Hopefully this document includes the OPs legal name which would be a good document to show their legal relationship to the child.

I have traveled multiple times with my preschool age son (across state lines but always within the US) and per recommendations by the airlines always bring along a copy of this document. I have yet to been asked to provide it by the airlines or security but it gives me comfort in knowing that if ever questioned I could provide legal documentation of my relationship to my child.

Examples of recommendations from airlines:

• https://www.allegiantair.com/traveling-with-children


• https://www.aa.com/i18n/travel-info/special-assistance/traveling-children.jsp


• https://www.lawdepot.com/blog/3-documents-every-parent-needs-when-traveling-with-children/