Traveling with kids when you coparent adds a layer that solo-parent trips never deal with: a second parent whose sign-off, signature, and peace of mind all matter before anyone boards a plane. The paperwork itself is simple, but it has a habit of surfacing at the worst possible moment — the passport counter, the check-in desk, the border booth — when there’s no time left to fix it. A little lead time, and one permission letter, is usually all it takes to keep the trip smooth.
A trip is really just a stretch of your custody time spent somewhere else, so it sits on top of the same foundation as the rest of your arrangement — your co-parenting custody schedule. The difference is that a few of the pieces need another person’s cooperation and a calendar’s worth of advance notice. Sorting them early turns a potentially tense ask into a quick, routine one.
Why does traveling with kids take extra planning when you coparent?
Two reasons. First, a child’s travel documents and cross-border consent are tied to both parents, not just the one holding the boarding passes — so some steps simply can’t be done alone. Second, a trip takes the kids out of one home’s normal reach for days at a time, and the parent staying behind feels that absence whether or not they mention it. Handling both the legal pieces and the human ones up front is what keeps a trip from becoming a flashpoint. None of it is about asking permission to parent — it’s about making sure the airport isn’t the first time the other parent hears the details.
What paperwork do you need before you go?
Three documents cover almost every trip. Start with whichever one takes longest to produce, because the travel date won’t wait for a slow government office.
The Permission Letter
A permission letter — often called a child travel consent letter — is a signed statement from the non-traveling parent saying they know about and agree to the trip. It should name both parents and the child, the destination, the travel dates, and a phone number where the consenting parent can be reached. For international travel, get it notarized: it’s cheap, quick, and border agents are far more likely to accept it. For domestic trips a signed note is usually enough, though a notarized one never hurts on a longer or farther-flung trip.
Current Passports
For a child’s passport, both parents generally have to consent in person or in writing — one parent can’t renew a minor’s passport alone. That makes passports the single most common reason a trip gets derailed, because the requirement catches people off guard and processing can run for weeks. Check expiration dates the moment a trip is even a possibility; many countries require at least six months of validity beyond your return date. If a passport is close to expiring, treat the renewal as the first task on the list, not the last.
The Itinerary Packet
This one isn’t a legal document — it’s a courtesy that prevents a lot of friction. Before you leave, send the other parent the flight numbers, the name and address of where you’re staying, and the dates you’ll be away. It takes five minutes and it answers the question the staying-behind parent is quietly asking: if something happened, could I reach them? Sharing it without being asked signals that the trip isn’t a secret — which is often worth more to the other home than the information itself.
The Schedule Agreement
If the trip spills into the other parent’s custody days, that’s a conversation to have before you book, not after. Propose the full range of dates as a single block — “I’d like to take the kids June 14 through the 24th” — rather than asking for one day at a time. Offer to give back equivalent time, and once you agree, put the block on the shared calendar so the normal rotation picks back up on its own when you return.
Domestic trips are lighter on paperwork, but not free of it. No passport, usually no notary — but a signed permission letter still smooths an airline check-in, and the itinerary share and the schedule conversation matter just as much as they do abroad. The rule of thumb: the farther and longer the trip, the more formal each piece should be.
What’s the pre-trip checklist for coparents?
Run through these a few weeks out — early enough that anything missing can still be fixed:
- Are the passports valid well past your return date? Many destinations require six months of remaining validity. Check early — renewals for minors need both parents and can take weeks.
- Is the permission letter signed, and notarized if you’re crossing a border? Include both parents’ names, the child, the dates, the destination, and a reachable phone number for the consenting parent.
- Does the other parent have your itinerary? Flight numbers, lodging, and dates — sent without having to be asked for them.
- Have you agreed on how the kids will stay in touch with the other parent? A set call time or two beats an open-ended “whenever.” It gives kids something to count on and the other parent something to plan around.
- Is the custody block confirmed and on the shared calendar? If the trip crosses the other parent’s days, the swap should be settled and visible, not assumed.
How do you handle contact with the other parent during the trip?
The goal is to keep the other home connected without letting check-ins take over the vacation — and a predictable rhythm does that better than good intentions. Agree before you leave on roughly when the kids will call or video, then let them lead the conversation instead of turning it into a status report. This is the same information-sharing instinct that smooths an ordinary week; our guide to the weekly information handoff covers the everyday version.
- Set the rhythm, not a rule. A standing bedtime call every second night is easier for everyone to keep than a vague promise to check in, and kids relax when they know it’s coming.
- Let younger kids keep it short. A two-minute hello is a win on a busy travel day. The point is contact, not a full report.
- Keep logistics off the kids. If plans shift, message the other parent directly rather than asking the children to relay it.
- Mind the time zones. If you’re traveling far, agree on call windows that work in both places so nobody’s phone rings at 3 a.m.
Most of these trips land in the summer, when the rotation already loosens up — if you haven’t mapped that stretch yet, our guide to building a coparenting summer schedule is the place to start. And once the plans are set, there’s the money question: a trip is mostly the traveling parent’s cost, with a few shared exceptions like passports and travel health. Our breakdown of the coparenting vacation expenses split walks through exactly what crosses into the shared ledger and what stays personal.
coparent keeps your custody schedule, trip blocks, shared documents, and the other parent all in one place — so the itinerary, the permission letter, and the agreed dates are a tap away instead of buried in a text thread.
Try coparent free — plan your next trip without the paperwork scramble