This is really interesting, and sorry to hear that you had such a stressful experience at the border. Thank you for sharing. Question though, why does a general permission letter cost so much money? Couldn't you just carry a copy of a general permission letter from your husband in your son's passport? Or does it have to be notarized?
Ah, the version that costs a few hundred dollars is the catch-all-till-the-age of 18 document AND it needs to be apostilled. Typically, the single use letter authorizing one trip for specific dates is like $30 through a Panamanian consulate abroad, and probably less if done in Panama. But you know how we nomads operate, especially with family and friends in different countries. We spy an awesome flight deal 👀 and the dates align ⚡️ and we MUST GO ✈️ Having one parent already out of country and not having an "apostilled" authorization letter available would be highly inconvenient.
As a fellow Substack writer, I've gotta ask: Who did the art for this post?
Me! I did it in Canva Pro.
Nice!
Ah I see! Thanks for the details ☺️
This is really interesting, and sorry to hear that you had such a stressful experience at the border. Thank you for sharing. Question though, why does a general permission letter cost so much money? Couldn't you just carry a copy of a general permission letter from your husband in your son's passport? Or does it have to be notarized?
Ah, the version that costs a few hundred dollars is the catch-all-till-the-age of 18 document AND it needs to be apostilled. Typically, the single use letter authorizing one trip for specific dates is like $30 through a Panamanian consulate abroad, and probably less if done in Panama. But you know how we nomads operate, especially with family and friends in different countries. We spy an awesome flight deal 👀 and the dates align ⚡️ and we MUST GO ✈️ Having one parent already out of country and not having an "apostilled" authorization letter available would be highly inconvenient.