HELP! What exactly is needed to take my Thai daughter out of Thailand and to the USA?

Leveraged · January 26

My daughter has both her Thai passport and her American passport already in hand. She is 4 years old. We are unfortunately having marriage problems and it looks like its settling on me taking custody of our daughter and in doing so that would mean I need to get back to the USA with her so I can work. I am the father, and it looks like the Thai mother wants to leave and give me the kid and take everything else.

So what exactly do I need to get out of the country? I know I need the obvious, but im talking specfically about a letter or some kind of document from the mother that gives me her permission to take our daughter out of thailand and into the USA? If this document is needed, does it need to be notorized or something? Witnessed somehow? Or can I just print out a standard template from the internet and have her sign it? This is what im trying to ask, what specifically is needed and done in what exact way so that there is no issue in thailand airport or on arrival in the american airport?

Obviously nobody needs to know this trip is due to marital problems, for all concerned its just a little father/daughter trip to see the other side of the family.

Can anyone help? Advise?

I would LOVE to hear any experiences people have who have brought their kid through the airport with only one parent present.

Thanks so much to anyone who replies with help or whatever because im kind of having a crummy time at the moment and really need some help with this particular issue.

Leveraged · January 26

Another question: does my daughter stamp out of thailand on her thai passport or on her American one?

she is only 4 and has never left thailand before

couchpotato · January 26

3 minutes ago, Leveraged said:

Another question: does my daughter stamp out of thailand on her thai passport or on her American one?

she is only 4 and has never left thailand before

For this particular question she must leave on Thai passport (at immigration), but will need to show American passport at flight checkin (in lieu of not having/needing US visa). Hope that helps.

(PS..as for your first question..yes you will need a letter from your wife authorising the trip, which will probably need to be shown at immigration...but hopefully other posters will give more details).

Leveraged · January 26

4 minutes ago, couchpotato said:

For this particular question she must leave on Thai passport (at immigration), but will need to show American passport at flight checkin (in lieu of not having/needing US visa). Hope that helps.

Unfortunately im having trouble locating her Thai passport (thinking wife may have taken it) so is this mandatory?

Can she leave on the American one at all????

Justanotherone · January 26

local ampur, you, kid, mother, maybe a thai friend you trust, go ask for the wife to give permission, officially, to take her out of the country... should do it for immigration at the airport

stamp out thai passport, stamp in US passport in USA

richard_smith237 · January 26

First things first.

You need an uncontested divorce - this should be a simple as both the mother and yourself going to the Amphur office and obtaining this and your mother signing over sole parental rights to yourself (also assuming you were married at the time of the Birth and your name is listed on the Childs birth certificate).

Once you are divorced and have sole parental rights, you are free to travel where you like.

The alternative:

- Obtain a letter of 'Parental Consent' signed by the mother for you to travel with your daughter, however this is not permission to 'move overseas' and is only permission to travel showing clear intent to return to thailand.

- Theoretically this letter needs to be notarised at the local Amphur office (although travelling with my Son - I've never been asked for this letter, so its a bit hit and miss).

IMO - to protect yourself from any future issues, I think the best option is to secure a non-contested divorce and claim sole parental rights - clearly you need the compliance of the mother to do this.

------------

Your Child (Thai) will need to leave on her Thai Passport - you need to get hold of that from the mother.

Your child 'stamps out' on her Thai Passport.

--------

As far as travelling without the 'other parent'..

Both my Wife and I have done this twice - each time we prepared a letter or parental consent, just incase we were asked at immigration. We were not asked. However, I know friends who have been, so its best to have your ducks in a row.

Leveraged · January 26

25 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Both my Wife and I have done this twice - each time we prepared a letter or parental consent, just incase we were asked at immigration. We were not asked. However, I know friends who have been, so its best to have your ducks in a row.

This letter, it was just basically a word document that you filled out and you both simply signed and dated? I guess what Im asking is if there was any third party involvement in it at all, or if it was something the both of you created and signed and thats it.

Nip · January 26

To be neat and tidy. You need the child’s mother to sign over sole custody to you in the Children’s Court be you married or not. I wasn’t. You need the child’s Thai and American passports Thai for departing and US on arrival and as in my case because the Airline and Immigration can be difficult I luckily persuaded the child’s mother to come to the airport as well just in case. Basically there is only one way to do this. The Airline was particularly unhelpful and created an unnecessary issue. As a previous poster stated the Airline must make sure the child has a US passport or Visa. My advice is don’t cut corners do it right and that entails the mother agreeing. The Childrens Courts are there to do what’s best for the child primarily.

wavodavo · January 26

1 hour ago, Nip said:

To be neat and tidy. You need the child’s mother to sign over sole custody to you in the Children’s Court be you married or not. I wasn’t. You need the child’s Thai and American passports Thai for departing and US on arrival and as in my case because the Airline and Immigration can be difficult I luckily persuaded the child’s mother to come to the airport as well just in case. Basically there is only one way to do this. The Airline was particularly unhelpful and created an unnecessary issue. As a previous poster stated the Airline must make sure the child has a US passport or Visa. My advice is don’t cut corners do it right and that entails the mother agreeing. The Childrens Courts are there to do what’s best for the child primarily.

From my experience the airline demanded the letter of authority first up before we could even check in so you must have the required paperwork or you won't get very far.

yankee99 · January 26

the document you need is a pre printed form at the amphur and your wife will need to sign it. Everything else is standard.

AustinRacing · January 27

I don’t think she can fly out on USA passport.

cranki · January 27

Immigration also asked for my sons birth certificate when we flew out (even though my wife was with me), this was only 3 months ago.

brewsterbudgen · January 27

26 minutes ago, cranki said:

Immigration also asked for my sons birth certificate when we flew out (even though my wife was with me), this was only 3 months ago.

How old was your son? Was it the first time he had left Thailand?

richard_smith237 · January 27

On 1/26/2025 at 11:41 AM, Leveraged said:

On 1/26/2025 at 11:13 AM, richard_smith237 said:

Both my Wife and I have done this twice - each time we prepared a letter or parental consent, just incase we were asked at immigration. We were not asked. However, I know friends who have been, so its best to have your ducks in a row.

This letter, it was just basically a word document that you filled out and you both simply signed and dated? I guess what Im asking is if there was any third party involvement in it at all, or if it was something the both of you created and signed and thats it.

Attached is a format of the letter....

Its just something I made up - but covers they key information needed.

Theoretically it would need to be 'stamped / signed / notarised' by your local Amphur office but we never went as far as going that far.

We also travel with Digital copies of all documentation.

Note:

Our Son was 3 years old and 4 when I took him out of the country on or own.

He was about 6 and 8 on the times the Wife has taken him out alone.

Neither of us have ever been asked for any documentation - but we have friends who have been stopped and asked with travelling as a lone parent with a child.

Also note: Our surnames are all the same.

Another point:

IF taking a child out of the country, always show 'intent to return' as removing a child from the country with clear intent not to return 'could' be viewed upon unfavourably by Thai courts if any contest comes to that.

Best option remains: Get an uncontested divorce and sole custody from the mother.

brewsterbudgen · January 27

38 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Attached is a format of the letter....

Its just something I made up - but covers they key information needed.

Theoretically it would need to be 'stamped / signed / notarised' by your local Amphur office but we never went as far as going that far.

We also travel with Digital copies of all documentation.

Note:

Our Son was 3 years old and 4 when I took him out of the country on or own.

He was about 6 and 8 on the times the Wife has taken him out alone.

Neither of us have ever been asked for any documentation - but we have friends who have been stopped and asked with travelling as a lone parent with a child.

Also note: Our surnames are all the same.

Another point:

IF taking a child out of the country, always show 'intent to return' as removing a child from the country with clear intent not to return 'could' be viewed upon unfavourably by Thai courts if any contest comes to that.

Best option remains: Get an uncontested divorce and sole custody from the mother.

That's useful, thanks. I started a different thread about my situation as I didn't want to hijack this one.

khunPer · January 27

On 1/26/2025 at 3:15 AM, Leveraged said:

My daughter has both her Thai passport and her American passport already in hand. She is 4 years old. We are unfortunately having marriage problems and it looks like its settling on me taking custody of our daughter and in doing so that would mean I need to get back to the USA with her so I can work. I am the father, and it looks like the Thai mother wants to leave and give me the kid and take everything else.

So what exactly do I need to get out of the country? I know I need the obvious, but im talking specfically about a letter or some kind of document from the mother that gives me her permission to take our daughter out of thailand and into the USA? If this document is needed, does it need to be notorized or something? Witnessed somehow? Or can I just print out a standard template from the internet and have her sign it? This is what im trying to ask, what specifically is needed and done in what exact way so that there is no issue in thailand airport or on arrival in the american airport?

Obviously nobody needs to know this trip is due to marital problems, for all concerned its just a little father/daughter trip to see the other side of the family.

Can anyone help? Advise?

I would LOVE to hear any experiences people have who have brought their kid through the airport with only one parent present.

Thanks so much to anyone who replies with help or whatever because im kind of having a crummy time at the moment and really need some help with this particular issue.

You will need a letter from the local Amphor-district office to prove that you have permission to take your daughter out of the country. The mother need to be present at the Amphor-office to confirm this.

The letter is an official standard document and looks like this (the document I used when travelling with my daughter)...

Upon check-in at the airline you should use your daughter's US-passport, which will make her eligible to travel without a visa.

Your daughter needs to exit the immigration on her Thai passport, if she has no entry stamp in her US-passport. Don't show her US-passport at immigration.

The immigration officer may ask for permission – i.e., the letter – very likely, when a father travels alone with a very young minor out of Thailand.

Me, I was never asked, but first time I travelled alone with my daughter she was 13 years old, but the immigration officer asked some questions in Thai language to my daughter.

khunPer · January 27

1 hour ago, richard_smith237 said:

Attached is a format of the letter....

Its just something I made up - but covers they key information needed.

Theoretically it would need to be 'stamped / signed / notarised' by your local Amphur office but we never went as far as going that far.

We also travel with Digital copies of all documentation.

Note:

Our Son was 3 years old and 4 when I took him out of the country on or own.

He was about 6 and 8 on the times the Wife has taken him out alone.

Neither of us have ever been asked for any documentation - but we have friends who have been stopped and asked with travelling as a lone parent with a child.

Also note: Our surnames are all the same.

Another point:

IF taking a child out of the country, always show 'intent to return' as removing a child from the country with clear intent not to return 'could' be viewed upon unfavourably by Thai courts if any contest comes to that.

Best option remains: Get an uncontested divorce and sole custody from the mother.

Have you used this for travelling alone with a minor Thai child?

For Thai-immigration you might need the official Thai-document for travelling alone with a minor Thai citizen; se my above reply.

stupidfarang · January 27

On 1/26/2025 at 9:44 AM, Leveraged said:

Unfortunately im having trouble locating her Thai passport (thinking wife may have taken it) so is this mandatory?

Can she leave on the American one at all????

Leaving on the USA passport may create a problem at immigration as the computer system will not have a record of the USA passport coming into Thailand. This happen to me in Australia when our son was born there and we left on a UK passport obtained in Australia when he was born. The system did not have a record of the passport coming into the country, luckly immigration understood but told us not to use the passport coming back into Australia. This was 28 years ago, things change but you do not want any problems at all so get her Thai passport. Be civil with the wife, no fighting until after you get back to the USA.

stupidfarang · January 27

On 1/26/2025 at 9:15 AM, Leveraged said:

My daughter has both her Thai passport and her American passport already in hand. She is 4 years old. We are unfortunately having marriage problems and it looks like its settling on me taking custody of our daughter and in doing so that would mean I need to get back to the USA with her so I can work. I am the father, and it looks like the Thai mother wants to leave and give me the kid and take everything else.

So what exactly do I need to get out of the country? I know I need the obvious, but im talking specfically about a letter or some kind of document from the mother that gives me her permission to take our daughter out of thailand and into the USA? If this document is needed, does it need to be notorized or something? Witnessed somehow? Or can I just print out a standard template from the internet and have her sign it? This is what im trying to ask, what specifically is needed and done in what exact way so that there is no issue in thailand airport or on arrival in the american airport?

Obviously nobody needs to know this trip is due to marital problems, for all concerned its just a little father/daughter trip to see the other side of the family.

Can anyone help? Advise?

I would LOVE to hear any experiences people have who have brought their kid through the airport with only one parent present.

Thanks so much to anyone who replies with help or whatever because im kind of having a crummy time at the moment and really need some help with this particular issue.

You say your wife wants everything else and you take the kid, I suggest you do not sign or give anything over until you have the kids thai passport, birth cert, and anyother papers the mum/wife needs to sign so you can take your daughter out of Thailand, it is a game of chess and you need to be smart in your moves. Wishing you all the best

richard_smith237 · January 27

3 hours ago, khunPer said:

4 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Attached is a format of the letter....

Its just something I made up - but covers they key information needed.

Theoretically it would need to be 'stamped / signed / notarised' by your local Amphur office but we never went as far as going that far.

We also travel with Digital copies of all documentation.

Note:

Our Son was 3 years old and 4 when I took him out of the country on or own.

He was about 6 and 8 on the times the Wife has taken him out alone.

Neither of us have ever been asked for any documentation - but we have friends who have been stopped and asked with travelling as a lone parent with a child.

Also note: Our surnames are all the same.

Another point:

IF taking a child out of the country, always show 'intent to return' as removing a child from the country with clear intent not to return 'could' be viewed upon unfavourably by Thai courts if any contest comes to that.

Best option remains: Get an uncontested divorce and sole custody from the mother.

Expand

Have you used this for travelling alone with a minor Thai child?

For Thai-immigration you might need the official Thai-document for travelling alone with a minor Thai citizen; se my above reply.

Yes & No…

I’ve had the letter with me, signed by my Wife…. But I never needed it, was never questioned etc so the reality it ‘No, I didn’t use the letter’….

Friends have been stopped without a letter, the just called up ‘mum’ who spoke with the immigration office who had no issues with letting them pass.

IF someone wants to be ‘perfect’ & remove any probability of doubt, then your recommendation is best & use the letter you posted….

In reality there is some flexibility- but….. in this case it’s not clear what the relationship is like with the opps Wife.

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