Passports And Legal Guardians

[buffymad]

Do legal guardians have authority to obtain passports for minors or do they need authority from one or both parents? Also, if more than one legal guardian, do both have to be involved in getting the passport or will just one do?

[calmck]

Passport forms for children technically have to be signed by the parents with identification noted on the form. I think you need to contact the passport office. If the parents have had their parental rights terminated by the court then I would assume the legal guardians would apply for and sign the passport forms and the legal documents would have to be submitted. You really need to consult passport office or the lawyers involved with the custody issue for the correct advice

[Peter Pedant]

google passports and legal guardians

I sort of glazed over when I saw the words special legal guardians

it depends on the facts - like are the legal guardians legal guardians or is it just they would like to be?

( in a past life, we did a renal transplant on a child without consent because the parents 'forgot' to tell us the child was - - a ward of court. oops!)

[Buenchico]

The relevant rules doesn't refer to 'legal guardianship'. They only refer to 'parental responsibility', which is what is required to be able to obtain a passport on behalf of a child:
https://www.gov.uk/get-a-child-passport

The legal problems which can occur tend to relate to actually taking a child out of the country, rather than the process for obtaining a passport to do so. For example anyone who is 'connected with' a child commits a criminal offence if they take that child out of the UK unless
(a) they have the consent of all other persons who're 'connected with' the child ; or
(b) there is a child arrangements order in place, stating that the child should live with them, and the child is taken out of the country for less than one month ; or
(c) they're the 'special guardian' of the child and not taking them out of the country for more than three months ; or
(d) a court has granted permission for the child to be taken out of the UK.

(A person is connected with a child if they're the parent, guardian, special guardian or custodian of the child).

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1984/37/part/I