Unaccompanied Travel of Filipino Minor Children and DSWD Travel Clearance

Unaccompanied Travel of Filipino Minor Children

To the Philippines

Filipino minor children (age below 18 years old) travelling to the Philippines must have a valid passport. If the child will travel unaccompanied by an adult, the parents are advised to consult the airline policy on the minimum age allowed for a child’s unaccompanied travel.

Out of the Philippines

A minor Filipino child (age below 18 years old) travelling outside of the Philippines not accompanied by a parent is required to have a travel clearance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Under its Omnibus Guidelines on Minors Traveling Abroad, the DSWD mandates that only minors aged 13 years old and above with a travel clearance are allowed to travel alone. Minors 12 years old and below shall be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians when traveling abroad.

Parent(s) of the Filipino minor(s) travelling to the Philippines are advised to execute the following documents:

The information below is taken from the website of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD): https://www.dswd.gov.ph/travel-clearance-for-minors/

SECURE A TRAVEL CLEARANCE FOR MINORS TRAVELLING ABROAD ONLINE:

https://www.dswd.gov.ph/eservices-3/

Due to increasing incidences of child abductions, a Filipino minor child, regardless of civil status, is required to secure a travel clearance issued by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) if the child will travel out of the Philippines, either alone or with an adult other than a parent.

WHO IS A MINOR?

Minor (also referred to as “Child”) as defined in RA 7610 refers to a person below eighteen (18) years of age or one who is over eighteen (18) but is unable to fully take care of or protect himself/herself from abuse, neglect, cruelty, exploitation, or discrimination because of physical or mental disability or condition.

WHO NEEDS TO SECURE A TRAVEL CLEARANCE?

Filipino minor who is travelling alone using the Philippine Passport only for their travel outside the Philippines;
Filipino minor travelling with prospective adoptive parent/s for purpose of inter-country adoption;
Filipino minor travelling with a person other than his/her parent/s, legal guardian or person exercising parental authority/ legal custody over him/her;
Filipino minor who is illegitimate and is travelling with his/her biological father;
For married minors, the same requirement applies to that of unmarried minors travelling abroad.

MINORS EXEMPTED FROM SECURING A TRAVEL CLEARANCE

1. A minor accompanied by the following:

Either or both of the minor’s parents, if legitimate minor;
The minor’s biological mother, if illegitimate minor;
The minor’s father who has been granted sole parental authority or custody by the proper court, if the minor is illegitimate;
The minor’s legal guardian;
The person, including one of the minor’s parents, who was granted sole parental authority or legal custody by the proper court, in which case the court decision should specifically include a statement to this effect, i.e., naming the person to whom sole parental authority or legal custody over the minor has been granted;
Minor’s adoptive parents if the minor granted with adoption decree and certificate of finality.

2. A minor who is an immigrant or a permanent resident abroad, with foreign passport, or whose parents are in the Foreign Service holding diplomatic/official passport such as Ambassador/ General Consul/Consul/Attaches, provided he/she is holding a valid passport such as dependent visa/identification card which served as proof that the travel does not constitute trafficking. A minor who is a Filipino citizen and living abroad but does not hold either a permanent resident visa or equivalent pass issued by another country is required to secure a travel clearance.

DSWD REQUIREMENTS FOR A TRAVEL CLEARANCE

The application for travel clearance and its documentary requirements are filed at any DSWD Field Office. The application form is available at all DSWD Field Offices and downloadable from DSWD website www.dswd.gov.ph. The documentary requirements vary depending on whether the child is travelling alone or travelling with an adult other than a parent or legal guardian

For minors travelling alone to a foreign country for the first time:

Duly accomplished DSWD Travel Clearance application form
Photocopy of either Birth Certificate or passport of the minor
Written consent of both parents or the solo parent or the legal guardian permitting the minor to travel alone to a foreign country. Parents based in Germany can book an appointment at the Embassy to secure a consularized Affidavit granting permission for the minor to travel alone. Please see template here.
Proof of the consenting parent’s relation to the child, in one of the following forms:
- (married parents) a photocopy of the marriage certificate of the minor’s parents
- (legal guardian) a photocopy of the certificate of legal guardianship of the minor,
- (solo parent) a photocopy of the solo parent identification card from the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office, a Local Social Welfare and Development Office, Tallaq or Faskh certification from the Shariah court or any Muslim Barangay or religious leader
- (if child is illegitimate) a Certificate of No Marriage (CENOMAR) issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO)
- (if parents are deceased) a photocopy of the death certificate
- Two colored passport size photos of the minor taken within the last six (6) months

The DSWD social worker may require additional documentary requirements during the assessment of the Travel Clearance application to make sure that no child shall be trafficked and that the child’s best interest and welfare is ensured.

For minors travelling for the first time with a person other than the parents or legal guardian:

Duly accomplished DSWD Travel Clearance application form
A photocopy of the birth certificate of minor
A written consent of both parents or the solo parent or the legal guardian permitting the minor to travel to a foreign country with a specific person other than them. Parents based in Germany can book an appointment at the Embassy to secure a consularized Affidavit granting permission for the minor to travel alone. Please see template here.
As appropriate, a photocopy of the marriage certificate of the minor’s parents or a certificate of legal guardianship of the minor or in the case of solo parents, a solo parent identification card from the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office or a certification from the Local Social Welfare and Development Office of being a solo parent or a court decree of separation, annulment or divorce, or Tallaq or Fasakh certification from the Shariah court or any muslim barangay or religious leader or in the case of an illegitimate minor, a certificate of no marriage (CENOMAR) *from the National Statistics Office or in the case of a deceased parent, a photocopy of the death certificate
Two coloured passport photos of the minor taken within the last 6 months.
Photocopy of the passport of the travelling companion
For minor illegitimate children travelling abroad with the biological father, travel clearance certificate is required, as parental authority is vested only to the mother of the child, per Article 176 of the Family Code of the Philippines

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR MINOR/S UNDER SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES

For Filipino minor travelling unaccompanied/ alone:

Unaccompanied minor certificate from the airlines
Waiver from the parents releasing DSWD-NCR from any liability/responsibility in case of untoward incident during the travel of the child.
If minor will be visiting a relative abroad, include letter of invitation/support and guarantee from the inviter/sponsor with attached copy of his/her passport and visa.

NOTE: NO MINOR BELOW 13 YEARS OF AGE SHALL BE ALLOWED TO TRAVEL ALONE

For Filipino minor who will attend conference, study tour, competition, student exchange program, summer camp, pilgrimage, world youth day and other related activities:

Certificate of participation with list of participants from the school or local organization with letter head and signature of official head.
Signed invitation from the sponsoring agency/organization abroad with itinerary of travel.
Affidavit of undertaking executed by the travelling companion indicating the safety measures undertaken by the sports agency (for sports competition).

For abandoned minor with alleged missing parent, if parents are married, the following shall be the requirements:

Social Case Study Report executed by a licensed social worker of the Local Government Unit (LGU).
Barangay Certification of non-existence of the alleged missing parent from his/her last known address. (Indicate complete date when was the alleged missing parent last seen)
Notarized affidavit of Three (3) disinterested persons/somebody who has no blood relation to the family of minor that can attest/certify abandonment of either parent. (Attach valid ID of affiants)

For Filipino minor who will study abroad:

Acceptance or Certificate of Enrollment/Registration from the school where minor is to be enrolled.

For Filipino minor migrating to another country:

Visa petition approval

For Filipino minor going abroad for medical purposes:

Medical abstract of the minor.
Recommendation from the attending physician that such medical procedure is not available in the country.

For Filipino minor going abroad for inter-country adoption:

Placement Authority issued by the ICAB
Authority to Escort issued by the ICAB

For Filipino minor under Foster Care:

Notarized affidavit of undertaking by the Foster Parent/s indicating the purpose of travel, destination, duration of travel and a provision stating the commitment of the Foster Parent on the personal appearance of child and foster parent to the Regional Director or his/her duly authorized representative, within 5 days upon return to the country.
Notarized affidavit of consent from the Regional Director or authorized representative.
Foster Placement Authority (Original and Photocopy)
Foster Care License (Original and Photocopy)
DSWD Certification of Child Declaring Legally Available for Adoption (CDCLAA) except those under Kinship Care wherein their parents did not relinquish the minor for adoption.
Return tickets

For Filipino minor under Legal Guardianship:

Certified true copy of Court Order on Legal Guardianship

For Filipino minor who is the subject of an ongoing adoption case:

No adoptee shall be issued a travel clearance unless a decree of adoption and certificate of finality is issued by the court. Further, no minor who was issued Pre-Adoption Placement Authority (PAPA) shall be issued travel clearance unless a court order is issued allowing the minor to travel with the Prospective Adoptive Parent.

NOTE: Other documentary requirements may be required according to the purpose of travel and based on the assessment of the social worker.

VALIDITY OF A DSWD TRAVEL CLEARANCE

A DSWD travel clearance is valid for a period of one (1) year from the date of issuance and shall be valid for multiple travels within the validity period, provided the conditions under which the travel clearance was issued have not changed. If a change in condition occurs like a change in travelling companion, a new travel clearance must be obtained.

FILING OF DSWD TRAVEL CLEARANCE

The application for travel clearance shall be submitted/filed manually by the parent/s or legal guardian or a duly authorized representative at DSWD Field Office that has jurisdiction over the residence of minor.

Service Hours: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, Mondays – Fridays (Except Holidays)

ISSUANCE

The Travel Clearance Certificate may be obtained within Three (3) working days upon submission of the required documents.

A fee of Php 300.00 per child with One (1) year validity
A fee of Php 600.00 per child with Two (2) years validity

NOTE: In case of loss of the issued travel clearance, new set of requirements should be submitted to the Field Office and will be issued a new travel clearance. This should not be taken as a renewal of travel clearance but a new application.

REFERENCE

A.O No. 12 series of 2017 also known as “Omnibus Guidelines for Minors Travelling Abroad”

For further inquiries, please contact the DSWD.

The Philippine Embassy in Berlin

Unaccompanied Travel of Filipino Minor Children and DSWD Travel Clearance