Traveling to the Dominican Republic With Children

Traveling internationally with a child for the first time sounds like a lot. Between the paperwork, the airport process, and everything else on your mind before a trip, it’s easy to imagine it being more complicated than it actually is. Families travel to the Dominican Republic every day, and the arrival process is the same routine entry that every other traveler goes through — just with smaller passengers. This page covers what parents actually need so there are no surprises at the airport.

Every Child Needs Their Own Passport

Every traveler entering the Dominican Republic needs a passport — including infants and toddlers. A birth certificate alone is not accepted for international travel, regardless of the child’s age. Immigration uses the passport to confirm identity when entering and leaving the country.

If your child doesn’t have a passport yet, apply as early as possible. Processing times can run several weeks and travel dates don’t speed that up. Before your trip, check the expiration date as well. For U.S. tourists visiting the Dominican Republic, your passport only needs to be valid for the duration of your stay — but some airlines have their own boarding policies, so it’s worth making sure the passport isn’t expiring close to your return date.

Official Resource U.S. Passport Application for Children — travel.state.gov

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The E-Ticket for Families

Every traveler needs an e-ticket record, including children. The good news is that you don’t need to fill out a completely separate form for each child — you can add family members within the same application when it asks for additional passengers.

When you finish, you’ll receive a QR code for entry and a separate one for exit. Save or screenshot both the same way you would for yourself. If you created a travel folder in your photos app, add the family QR codes there alongside everything else.

For a full walkthrough of the form itself, the e-ticket guide covers every step. Dominican Republic E-Ticket Guide →

Traveling With Only One Parent

This is the part that worries single parents the most, and it’s worth understanding clearly.

The Dominican Republic does not typically require a notarized permission letter when one parent travels with a child. However, U.S. Customs and Border Protection may ask questions when you return home, and airlines occasionally ask as well. Because of that, it’s strongly recommended that the traveling parent carry a simple consent letter signed by the non-traveling parent.

The letter doesn’t need to be formal or notarized to be useful. It just needs to clearly state the child’s full name, both parents’ full names, the travel dates, the destination, and a statement giving permission for the child to travel with the named parent.