Originally Posted by
Meril
Hello !
I'm from France, and I plan to take my daughter (11) to Florida next year for the holidays. Her father and I are divorced, so I don't have the same surname as her. I'd like to know if I must take special documents to prove she's my daughter (I don't want to have problem with custom or else when we arrive). I have a family record book but it's written only in French.
I emailed this question to the American Embassy in France some months ago but nobody replied
so I hope some of you will know.
Many of my EU relatives' children with a different family name than the family name of one or both parents, yet they never have a problem when the trip is directly between the US and EU Schengen countries or UK-Ireland CTA. To play it safer than usual, some may get a notarized statement from the other custodial parent "authorizing" travel or a demonstration document indicating sole custody if applicable.
A French document showing parentage need not be translated for the US CBP dealings upon entry.