Guide: Family documents
Can a minor travel to UAE without parents? The consent letter, notarised
Yes, a minor can travel to the UAE without parents, but the child needs papers that show both parents agree, and the airline decides how young is too young to fly alone. In practice that means a consent letter signed by the parent or parents who are not travelling, copies of their passports, the child’s own passport and visa, and, for younger children, the airline’s own unaccompanied minor service.
What matters most is where the letter is signed and who verifies the signature. A consent letter signed in the UAE is signed before a notary public here. We have in-house, in person notary public services, online notary public services and home visit notary services, so the parent can have the letter notarised in person, online or at home. A letter signed in India, Pakistan, the Philippines or anywhere else is signed before a notary there, and a UAE office will usually want it legalised through that country’s foreign ministry, the UAE embassy and MOFA.
This guide covers both directions: children flying into the UAE and children flying out of it.
Side by side
Five situations, five sets of papers
| Situation | Who signs a letter | Where it is usually signed | Extra step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Child flying into Dubai alone to join a parent here | The parent who stays at home, and often the parent in the UAE too | Home country and UAE | Airline unaccompanied minor service for younger children |
| Child flying into the UAE with grandparents, an aunt or a school group | Both parents | Wherever each parent lives | Carry copies of both parents’ passports |
| Child leaving the UAE with one parent | The parent who is not travelling | UAE, or abroad if that parent lives abroad | Letter legalised if signed abroad |
| Child leaving the UAE with another adult | Both parents | UAE, or abroad | Some families use a power of attorney instead |
| Parents separated or divorced | The parent without the child, or a court order instead | Depends on the order | Court documents may need attesting too |
For a child travelling with one parent only, the letter is often called an NOC. Our page on the NOC letter for a child travelling with one parent goes through that letter clause by clause.
Step by step
Minor travelling to Dubai without parents: flying in
A child arriving in Dubai or Abu Dhabi without parents meets two checks. At the departure airport, the airline checks that the child can fly alone or with the adult named. On arrival, UAE immigration may ask who is collecting the child and whether the parents agree.
Can a child travel to Dubai without parents from India, Pakistan or the Philippines? Yes, and the practical questions are the same:
01
Does the child have a valid visa for the UAE?
Visit or residence, issued before the flight.
02
Is there a signed letter from the parents?
Signed before a notary in the home country. If a UAE office (a school, a hospital, immigration) will rely on it after arrival, legalise it through the home foreign ministry, the UAE embassy and MOFA.
03
Who meets the child?
Name, passport or Emirates ID copy, and phone number of the adult collecting them.
04
Does the airline need its own form?
Airlines run their own unaccompanied minor services with their own forms and age bands. Check them with the airline before you book.
Minor travelling from UAE without parents: flying out
For a child leaving the UAE with a school trip, a relative or one parent, the letter is usually signed here by the parent or parents who are not travelling. We notarise it in person, online or at the parent’s home, office or hospital. The destination country may have its own rules on minors arriving without parents, so check them with that country’s embassy.
If the letter will be shown to an office abroad and that country wants it legalised, the notarised letter goes to MOFA and then to that country’s embassy or consulate in the UAE. See document legalization for the UAE and abroad.
Can a mother travel with the child without the father’s permission in the UAE?
Mothers ask us this often. The answer depends on custody, on the child’s residence status and on any court order. The practical side is simpler: airlines and immigration may ask the travelling parent for the other parent’s written consent, and a notarised letter from the father avoids the question at the counter. Where the parents are separated, a court order about custody or travel is the stronger document. For advice on a custody question, speak to a lawyer.
If the father is in the UAE, we notarise his letter in person, online or at his home. If the father lives abroad, he signs the consent before a notary where he lives, and the letter is legalised through his country’s foreign ministry, the UAE embassy and MOFA.
Emirates minor travelling without parents
Emirates, like other airlines, runs an unaccompanied minor service with its own paperwork, which people often call the Emirates child travel consent form. The airline’s paperwork covers who hands the child over and who collects the child. It does not replace a notarised letter from the parents when an authority asks for one. Age limits and fees are set by the airline and change, so check the airline’s current policy before booking.
The same applies on any airline, including for a 17 year old travelling to Dubai alone: the airline sets the age at which a teenager flies as an adult.
Checklist
Travel consent form for a minor in the UAE: what it should say
Offices call it by different names: a child travel consent form for the UAE, a travel permit for a minor, or an authorisation letter for a minor to travel without parents to the UAE. The content is the same, and a good parental consent letter is short and precise. Include:
- the child’s full name, date of birth and passport number, exactly as in the passport;
- each consenting parent’s full name, passport or Emirates ID number, address and phone;
- the name and passport number of the adult travelling with the child, or “travelling alone” with the airline’s unaccompanied minor reference;
- the route, flight numbers if known, and the travel dates, including the return;
- the address where the child will stay;
- a plain sentence of consent, and a line saying the parent can be contacted on the phone number given;
- the signature, made in front of the notary, not before.
A free child travel consent form, a child travel consent form UAE PDF or a sample from the internet can be a starting point, but many are written for another country and miss the details a UAE office looks for. Whatever template you use, it only counts once a notary has verified the signature. That is why people search for a notarised consent letter rather than a form.
Some families prefer a power of attorney (sometimes called a child travel POA or an SPA for a minor travelling without parents), which gives the travelling adult wider authority, for example to consent to medical treatment. That is a heavier document with a different fee. See power of attorney notarisation.
Step by step
Signed in the UAE or signed abroad: the chain
Signed in the UAE. We draft the letter, and the parent signs it before our in-house notary public, with their passport and Emirates ID. The notary checks the ID, watches the parent sign and applies the seal. The parent can come in person, sign online by video through the UAE remote notarisation channels, or we come to their home. If an office abroad will read the letter, we take it through MOFA and the destination embassy.
Signed abroad. The parent signs before a notary in their country. Then:
01
that country’s foreign ministry stamps it;
02
the UAE embassy or consulate in that country stamps it;
03
MOFA in the UAE stamps it.
We send the parent abroad the wording, so the letter they sign matches what the UAE side needs. Our page on embassy attestation by country lists the offices in each country.
An affidavit for a child travelling without parents follows the same chain. The difference is that the parent makes a sworn statement before the notary rather than signing a letter. See affidavits before a notary.
Checklist
Documents a child needs to travel without parents to Dubai
- The child’s passport, and visa if needed.
- The original notarised consent letter, with any legalisation stamps.
- Copies of both parents’ passports, and Emirates IDs if UAE residents.
- The child’s birth certificate, to link the child to the parents. If it was issued abroad and a UAE office will rely on it, see birth certificate attestation in Dubai.
- Any court order about custody or travel.
- The airline’s unaccompanied minor form, if the airline requires one.
How we help with the consent letter
Drafting.
We write the letter in plain English, with Arabic where the office reading it needs it.
Notarising in person.
The parent signs before our in-house notary public.
Notarising online.
The parent signs by video through the UAE remote notarisation channels, such as the Ministry of Justice e-Notary system and UAE PASS. We tell you if your document can be done online. See online notary in the UAE.
Home visit.
We come to your home, office, hospital or care home in the UAE. See home visit notary.
After the notary.
Translation, MOFA and the destination embassy, where the letter needs them. The whole family file is on our family visa documents page.
Prices
Prices
| Service | Our service price | Government fee, paid on top at cost |
|---|---|---|
| Child travel consent letter, drafted and notarised in the UAE | From AED 1,200 | AED 200 per party as a signature authentication, or AED 300 as an affidavit |
| MOFA attestation of the letter, if needed | From AED 150 | MOFA AED 150 |
| Legal translation | From AED 50 per page | AED 50 per page if notarised with the instrument |
| Courier pickup and delivery | From AED 80 | None |
| Home visit | Quoted when you book | Dubai private notary trip fee AED 1,000 per trip outside the place of work |
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Can a 17 year old travel to Dubai alone?
Often yes, but the airline decides the age at which a teenager can fly without its minor service. Carry a notarised letter from both parents either way. Check the airline’s current policy before you book.
Is a consent letter signed by a notary in India accepted in Dubai?
It is accepted once it carries the legalisation chain: the Indian foreign ministry, the UAE embassy or consulate in India, and MOFA in the UAE. An Indian notary’s seal alone is often not enough for a UAE office.
Can children travel without parents on a school trip?
Yes. The school usually asks both parents to sign its own consent form. If the trip leaves the UAE, a notarised letter from both parents is the safer choice.
Does a minor need parental consent to travel out of the UAE with one parent?
Airlines and immigration may ask for the other parent’s written consent. A notarised letter from the parent who is not travelling answers the question before it is asked.
How do I get a child travel consent form for the UAE?
Ask us to draft it, or bring your own draft. The parent signs it before our notary public in person, online or at home, or before a notary abroad followed by legalisation. Where you get the form matters less than who verifies the signature.
Do I need a child travel consent form if both parents are travelling?
Usually not, when both parents are on the same flight as the child. Carry the child’s birth certificate if the child’s surname differs from yours.
Family documents
More guides
Family documents
NOC for a visa
An NOC for a UAE visa is a no objection letter from someone whose consent the visa office wants to see: an employer, a sponsor, a spouse or a parent.
Family documents
Affidavit of support
When a relative comes to the UAE on a tourist visa, the host is sometimes asked for an affidavit of support: a statement, made under oath, that the host will house and.
Family documents
NOC for a child visa
An NOC from parents for a visa is a signed letter in which one parent says they do not object to something the other parent is doing for their child.
Get the letter right the first time
Tell us who is travelling, from where to where, and where each parent is today. We send the wording and tell you how the letter can be notarised: in person, online or at home.
- Phone and WhatsApp: +971 52 947 5935
- Email: info@dubainotaryservices.com
- Office open Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. WhatsApp and online requests answered 24/7.
Sources for this page
- UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, FAQ (legalisation chain and fees): https://www.mofa.gov.ae/en/faqs
- HCCH, Hague Convention status table (the UAE is not a party): https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=41
- Cabinet Resolution No. 19 of 2024 on notary fees: https://uaelegislation.gov.ae/en/legislations/2491
- Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2022 on the notary profession: https://uaelegislation.gov.ae/en/legislations/1563
- Dubai Media Office, Dubai Courts private notary fee decision: https://mediaoffice.ae/en/news/2025/december/29-12/dubai-courts-is-preparing-to-implement-the-decision-regulating-the-fees-of-the-private-notary-public