PARENTS are being warned about travelling with children who have a different surname to their own.
Some expect that they’ll need to prove that they’re allowed to travel abroad together, with documents like birth certificates to prove relationships.
Catherine lofthouseCatherine has a different surname to her children but still travels with them easily[/caption]
However, I’ve travelled on Eurostar with my sons many a time without my husband and never had any problems, despite not sharing their surname.
I’ve never needed anything other than our passports either.
That’s because all of my sons use my surname as a middle name, so it’s obvious we’re related.
I had a questioning glance once when the passport control
officer asked my toddler who I was and he recounted my full name instead of simply saying, “Mummy”.
It was awkward, but also a proud moment as I’ve tried to teach all my children my full name and their own in case they get separated from me and need to ask for adult help.
At least it proved that he had understood the lesson.
After I rephrased the question and we’d established that I was indeed my child’s mum, we were waved on our way and that’s the closest we’ve come to being stopped over our surnames.
Having said that, I’ve also travelled alone with my sons when they’ve been tiny babies who couldn’t talk, so asking the child questions is hardly a failsafe way of working out if you’re taking them abroad without parental permission.
Honestly, it’s ridiculous in this day and age that any parent can be stopped, simply because their child might have a different surname.
Why should parents who do have the same surname have less scrutiny?
We all know that child trafficking or parents abducting their own son or daughter can happen and there needs to be robust procedures in place to prevent that.
If there’s an issue with child safety, there should be a blanket rule that applies to all adults, regardless of whether your surname matches that of the child.
I can think of loads of families who might be disadvantaged otherwise.
What if you’re taking your foster child away for their first trip abroad? What if you’re in a blended family and not everyone has the same surname?
The only other time that having a different last name has caused confusion was when we took our very first trip abroad as new parents when our eldest son was just five weeks old.
While we were in Spain visiting family, we had to take the baby to an urgent care centre.
We had his European health card, so all was fine, but confusion arose when we needed to fill in the forms to access the free health care we were entitled to.
In Spain, people generally have two surnames, one from
their mother and one from their father, so it was hard to explain that my surname was my son’s middle name rather than one of his surnames.
We didn’t want the hassle of having the form filled in incorrectly in case it affected how it would be processed and might leave us liable to paying for the health care he received.
It just goes to show that other cultures have different customs when it comes to surnames, which goes back to the point that assuming that children should share a single surname with both parents is a very narrow world view that
leads to misunderstandings.
When we were naming the boys, I suppose we could have gone down the route of a double-barrelled surname, but it seemed like a bit of a mouthful, given that both our last names are quite long.
So using my surname as a middle name was a happy medium and my sons are proud to be a bit different.
The fact that it makes it easier at border control is the icing on the cake.
Fingers crossed we continue to get waved
through without lots of questions or needing extra paperwork.
For those who haven’t got a backup method in place like I have, the government website currently states that parents should have copies of the following:
birth or adoption certificate showing your relationship with the child ORdivorce or marriage certificates if you are the parent but have a different surname to the child ORletter from the child’s parent/s giving you authority to travel with the child
Brits applying for their child’s first passport may run into issues if they are a single parent.
If divorced, both couples must be named on the passport form, and if this is not possible then it must be explained why.
Here is how to apply for your child’s passport.
Catherine LofthouseThe mum has a clever method using her surname to show her relationship[/caption] Read More