12 Year Old Son Born in US

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narbon

New Member
New to this site and not sure where to ask this question.

I know someone who has stayed here illegally from Trinidad 16 years and has a 12 year old son that was born in the US. She is considering moving back to Trinidad, with her son, to pursue an opportunity for schooling because she feels limited and exploited here. She is under the impression that her son will have to come back to the US every 6 months without her for some reason. Does anyone know anything about this?

Also, does anyone know if her son would be able to legally move with her back to Trinidad? Thanks for any help with this.
 
narbon said:
She is under the impression that her son will have to come back to the US every 6 months without her for some reason. Does anyone know anything about this?
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She's thinking about green card holders, who risk losing their green card or citizenship eligibility if they stay outside the US for more than 6 months. But since her son was born in the US, he would be a US citizen and would not have that restriction. His US citizenship is his for life regardless of where he lives in the world. But he should get a US passport before leaving the US; the US passport will enable him to return to the US when he wants. Obtaining the US passport will require his father's consent because of his age.

Also, does anyone know if her son would be able to legally move with her back to Trinidad?
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Yes, if he has Trinidadian citizenship and the father doesn't stop her from taking her son out of the country. If the father lives in the US, she probably will require his permission to remove him from the US, unless his parental rights have been terminated.

I don't know if he would qualify for Trinidadian citizenship under their laws. They might have some rules based on her marital status, age, the nationality of the father, etc.

If he qualifies for Trinidadian citizenship, she can get a Trinidadian passport for him through the Trinidad embassy in the US. He'll need that passport to move to Trinidad permanently.
 
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Thank you so much for this information. I'm really clueless when it comes to this stuff. Your answer is very helpful! Both of you!
 
But the thing with the father's permission is not just some technicality with getting a U.S. passport. It's also a bigger moral issue dealing with child abduction. You never mentioned the father in the question. Are the parents married? Where is the father? Is the father in the U.S.? In Trinidad? or somewhere else? Does the father visit the child?

If the father is in the child's life, just taking the child away to another country without his permission is unethical and illegal, unless perhaps some extreme circumstance demands it. If, on the other hand, the father has never been in the child's life, then she should get full custody of the child in court, and then she can get whatever passports for the child without the other parent's permission.
 
Newacct emphasizes an important point. Removing her son from the US without appropriate permission from the father or courts could result in being arrested for international kidnapping.

In addition to getting the father's official written permission or having him present when applying for the boy's passport, the father's permission or presence also will be required to have the boy board the flight going out of the US. Otherwise there must be proof that the custody situation allows removing him from the US without the father's consent.
 
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10572 99839839

I'm appreciative of everyone's concern for the mother, the child, and the father in this. The father is from the US but has had zero contact with either the mother or the child the last 10 years. If he had, she may not be in the position she is now. He's clearly made his decision in how much he wants to be involved in his son's life.

But these are clear issues she will have to deal with re: a potential move out of the county. Thanks again for your input and help.
 
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