What all will I need for a 14 year old to travel to Russia alone?

[chade1968]

She has her US Permanent Residence and she wants to go next summer. Her mother does not want to go since she doesn't have family in Russia but her daughter's grandmother and her daughter's father does. I really want her daughter to go because she is so close to her grandmother and her health is not too good. I am just getting started on this so any information will be a great help. Thanks as always.

[Gator]

I ssume your question should be, "What will it take to convince my wife that her daughter can travel alone to Russia?"

Surely somone trustworthy will meet her at the airport.  She then can buy a mobile phone and call you every day (and you can call her).  What are your wife's concerns after that?

Has your stepdaughter behaved responsibly in the US?

Maybe your wife is protesting so that she will travel with your stepdaughter.

[BillyB]

Surely somone trustworthy will meet her at the airport. 

I think my biggest biggest concern will be any airport layovers before final destination. How will a 14 yo cope being alone for hours? Will she find her way through the airport and board her transfer flight successfully? I can see parents and grandparents panic if she doesn't arrive on time.

Chade, hopefully someone has experience with this and can give you tips. If not, call the airlines you plan to use to see how they help children traveling alone on international flights.

[I/O]

call the airlines you plan to use to see how they help children traveling alone on international flights.

I concur. Many airlines have different ticket rules for minors travelling alone. Some will (and legally can) refuse to uplift if all is not declared at ticketing time. Some refuse to carry minors alone period.

I would be looking for direct flights and planning this one very carefully if you are serious..........................

[chade1968]

My wife has no problem with her taking a direct flight to Moscow. Her dad will be meeting her in Moscow and he said it would be ok. He will be in Moscow before her plane leaves Atlanta or I will not let her get on here. I will also stay at the airport until she gets on the plane here. Obviously she will have a phone that work here and there. She is really the smartest and most responsible kid I have met. I guess my questions is really what paperwork will be required? Does she need an international passport or whatever.

[ConnerVT]

We did this with our (then) 9 y.o. son last year.  He flew to Moscow from JFK on his own, where his grandmother picked him up.  Since you are near Atlanta, I suggest she fly Delta to SVO, with a layover in JFK (careful not to book a JFK/LaGuardia connection!).

What she will need to travel is:

- Her own international Russian passport. (Unexpired, with at least a few months left before expiration)
- Her own Resident Alien card
- A notarized letter from her mother allowing her to travel to Russia and back.  A similar letter should be obtained from her father in Russia for the return trip.  But nobody in our case bothered to look/ask for either.

If your daughter is still listed in her mother's passport (unlikely at age 14), then she will need to deal with the Russian consulate to get her own.  (Trust me, less than fun...).

Delta charges a $100 fee (each way) for children 8-14 to fly unaccompanied.  An adult hands them off to an airline associate at the boarding gate (they will issue a pass to the unticketed adult to go through TSA security checkpoints).  They give the child a special neck pouch, which holds their tickets and documents.  They will assign a flight attendant to her on each flight, where they will help her on the flight.  At landing, they then hand her off to another Delta associate at (each) destination.

My son flew direct, but I understand that they have a waiting area where children stay while waiting for a connecting flight (after all, how many kids with divorced parents fly through major airports in the USA between court ordered visits?).

At SVO, a delta associate will escort her through Immigration Control, and on through Customs.  They will only hand off the child to the person designated by the adult on the originating side of the itinerary.  This person must show proper identification.

When my son flew, his grandmother went to the Delta ticket counter at SVO, where an employee had her go to the luggage claim area, where she met our son and "took possession" of him.

Hope the information helps.  You can see what Delta has about it here: http://www.delta.com/planning_reservations/special_travel_needs/services_for_children/children_traveling_alone/index.jsp

[kievstar]

I travelled alone when I was 12-13 to Canada, Mexico and within the USA - airlines will basically do shit to help or if they do will mess it up.  Should not be an issue if you take her to airport and father is picking her up.  I would buy her a global phone in case issues.  I would also explain what to do if an issue arises and to never leave the airport without you or her father.  Need to explain the picking up luggage as well in Moscow and USA.  Remember when she comes back into the USA to pickup the luggage before going through immigration.  Also, show her how to fill out the immigration forms in advance for Russia and USA and can keep as reference.

[chade1968]

Thanks for the advice. I don't plan for her to check any luggage, we will just put it all in one carry-on to keep it simple. Any advice of what the best site is to obtain an international passport?

[BillyB]

Any advice of what the best site is to obtain an international passport?

If nobody has a reliable recommendation, you could google "international passport" for some ideas. Call a company up and make sure they're legitimate with a real person that you can speak to before sending out documents. Tell them all the details pertaining to your situation so they can help you properly.

[ConnerVT]

Thanks for the advice. I don't plan for her to check any luggage, we will just put it all in one carry-on to keep it simple. Any advice of what the best site is to obtain an international passport?

From your original post, you said she is 14, and a Resident Alien.  How did she get into the US in the first place?  She either needed her own international passport, or was listed on her parent's passport. 

If she is listed as a child in her mother's passport, you will need to contact the consular office of the country which issued her mother's passport, and find out what you will need to do for her to get her own passport.  She will need this at some time anyway.

If it is a Russian passport, and you are in/near Atlanta, then most likely it is the Russian consulate in Washington DC.

[Gator]

ConnerVT is correct on all accounts.