Single parent with a baby - can enter the DR ?

[Keith R]

You may be right, D. I checked other sources and came with this from Debby's Dominican Travel, who cites as their source the Canadian Consulate:

This information was provided by the Dominican Consulate in Toronto, Ontario in April, 2001. Note that children under 14 years of age travelling alone or with non-parents needs a notarized letter from the parents that has been legalized by the Dominican Republic Consulate in order to enter and leave the DR. A child under 14 travelling with one parent that has legal custody of the child and the same last name does not need any authorization from the other parent. In cases of a custody dispute or other circumstances, it is urged that you call the Dominican Consulate for detailed instructions due to the fact that the DR has been getting stricter by the day with minors. Children over 14 can travel alone as long as they have their own passport, without any written permissions. You should also verify to see if there are any other requirements of the airline in order to board from your country of origin.

I tried to check for such info on the Dominican embassy website and the DR Mingration Dept website, but enither offered this sort of info (someone should point out to them the shortcomings in the info they provide -- hint, hint).

Regards,
Keith

[quaqualita]

last year I travelled from Puerto Plata to Germany and back with my 6 year old daughter, without my husband. I didn't have any papers from my husband with me, neither did anybody ask for it.
Was I just lucky?

[Dolores]

As I suspected, the US State Department travel note is publishing incorrect information. I checked with Mrs. Mendez, deputy director of Migration. She says that only proof of parenthood is needed, and the child, regardless of age, can travel with a single parent. The requirement for the notarized letter only applies in the case of a third party traveling with the child, regardless of the person being a grandmother or aunt, uncle, etc. And in this case, the requirement is only if the child is under 13 years of age. If the child is 13 years, then he/she can travel alone or with a third person with no additional documentation than that would be required of an adult.

[Keith R]

D, hope you emphasized to Mrs. Mendez that this type of information should be provided by Migracion on their website, and in a form where it can be easily found and understood. It also should be provided on the various Dominican embassy websites (couldn't find it on the website for the DR embassy in the US). When the DR government does not provide readily available, clear and easy-to-understand information, people will turn to the only alternative sources available, which in this case were wrong.
Best Regards,
Keith