Guide · Family & Citizenship
The Travel Permission Dominican Kids Need When Both Parents Aren't Traveling
This is the paperwork that trips up more summer trips than almost anything else on this site — and the rule changes depending on exactly who's flying with the child.
Dominican law requires a travel authorization whenever a minor leaves the country without one or both parents. It's a Procuraduría-legalized notarial document, and which version you need depends on your specific travel situation.
👪 Traveling with one parent
If the child is traveling with only one parent, that parent needs a notarized authorization from the other parent, legalized by the Procuraduría General de la República. This is the situation that catches the most families off guard — a lot of parents assume having one parent present is automatically enough.
✈️ Traveling alone, or with someone else
If the child is traveling with a third party, or flying as an unaccompanied minor, both parents have to authorize it — again through a notarial act legalized by the Procuraduría. If one or both parents live abroad, the move is to go to the nearest Dominican consulate and request a Poder Consular authorizing the child's departure.
✅ When you don't need this at all
If both parents are physically traveling with the child, no separate authorization is required. The permission, once issued, is valid for up to 90 days — book it close to your actual travel window rather than months in advance.
Do this before you book flights: figure out which of the three situations above applies to your trip, and start the paperwork with plenty of runway — a Procuraduría-legalized document takes real time, and 90-day validity means you can't get it too early either. If you're the parent staying abroad while your child visits DR with the other parent, this is the document that makes that trip legal.
Official source: the Dirección General de Migración runs a dedicated portal at permisosalidamenor.migracion.gob.do that walks through each scenario. If you're abroad, your nearest Dominican consulate handles the Poder Consular version.
Sources
1. Requirements by travel scenario (one parent, third party/unaccompanied, parent abroad) — Dirección General de Migración, permisosalidamenor.migracion.gob.do. 2. Procuraduría legalization requirement and 90-day validity — Migración instructivo (DOCUMENTO-ADJUNTO-1-PERMISO-SALIDA-MENORES) and Listín Diario reporting on the requirement, cross-checked July 2026.
Criollo News guides are practical explainers, not legal advice — confirm current requirements with Migración or your consulate before you travel, since document requirements can change.