Notarizing International Travel
Documents in Massachusetts.

A child travels internationally with only one parent, with grandparents or other relatives, or with non-family adults. Required or strongly recommended at borders in Canada, Mexico, all EU countries and most of Latin America and the Caribbean.

Completed (unsigned) consent letter, your valid government-issued photo ID, child’s passport or birth certificate for reference. Any custody documentation if applicable. Child does not need to attend.

Verify your identity, witness your signature, complete the notarial certificate and apply the seal. The document is returned to you immediately. We can also make copies at the appointment.

One parent cannot appear in person at the passport acceptance facility for a child’s new passport application. Only the absent parent’s signature on DS-3053 needs notarization. This is a State Department form — not the same as a travel consent letter.

Completed DS-3053 (unsigned), your valid government-issued photo ID, child’s birth certificate (helps confirm child’s details against the form). The present parent signs DS-3053 in person at the passport acceptance facility — not with us.

Notarize the absent parent’s signature on DS-3053. The present parent takes the notarized DS-3053 to the passport acceptance facility and signs their own portion there. Many families need both DS-3053 (for the passport) and a travel consent letter (for the trip).

Someone needs to manage your legal or financial affairs while you are overseas — signing property documents, managing a bank account, handling estate matters or conducting business transactions in your name. Common for military personnel, extended travelers and business owners.

Completed (unsigned) POA document, your valid government-issued photo ID. If the POA is for use in a Hague Convention country, it will also need an apostille from the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth after notarization. For non-Hague countries, consular legalization at the destination embassy is required.

Notarize the POA (typically as an acknowledgment). If apostille is also needed, we handle submission to the Secretary of the Commonwealth and courier service. If consular legalization is needed for non-Hague countries, we advise on the specific process for your destination country.

A child travels with a temporary guardian — grandparent, aunt, uncle, family friend — who may need to authorize medical treatment in a foreign country. Without notarized medical consent, foreign hospitals and clinics may refuse non-emergency treatment for a child in the care of a non-parent adult.

Completed (unsigned) medical consent form with the child’s full name, date of birth, health information, the temporary guardian’s name and contact information, and your own emergency contact information as the parent or legal guardian.

Notarize as an acknowledgment — the parent confirms the consent is their voluntary act and they understand its scope. Many families pair the medical consent with the travel consent letter in a single appointment, covering both border crossing and medical authorization for the same trip.

A legal guardian (not a parent) is traveling internationally with a child, or a parent with sole custody is traveling without documentation of that custody arrangement. Border agents may question the relationship between an adult and a child when both parents’ names are not on the travel documents.

The court order granting guardianship or sole custody must be a court-certified copy — not a photocopy of the original. Bring the certified court order, your valid government-issued photo ID and a completed travel consent letter. Together, these three documents are the standard package border agents expect.

We notarize the travel consent letter in the same appointment. We do not certify court orders — those must come from the court that issued the order. We can certify a copy of a custody order for domestic purposes but for international use, a court-certified copy from the court is the standard.

Some foreign government agencies, consulates and embassies request a notarized true copy of your US passport when submitting visa applications, residency applications or foreign professional licensing paperwork. Some countries also require it for dual citizenship applications where the US passport must be submitted as documentation.

Your valid, unexpired US passport. We make a photocopy of the passport information page and the visa page in our office, then certify the copy as a true and accurate reproduction of the original under M.G.L. c. 222. Bring the actual passport — we cannot certify a copy you have already made.

Copy certification of a document is a specific notarial act under M.G.L. c. 222 — different from an acknowledgment. We confirm we have compared the copy to the original, certify it is a true and complete reproduction, and apply the notarial certificate and seal. Vital records (birth certificates, marriage certificates) cannot be copy-certified — those require certified copies from the issuing government agency.