passport/guardian

my nephew who's 12 is trying to get passport.parents were never married,but both are joint guardians.problem is mother has completely lost touch and she needs to sign consent for passport,anyone got any ideas how to track someone down.ive tryed everything i can think of,electoral register,bebo,phonebook

Can the father (I presume, since the mother seems to be missing) not get himself declared sole guardian in this case?

A trip to the family law court is needed in this case, or the child will need to wait until it reaches 18 years old.

Ring your local circuit court. The registrar is usually very helpful. They will arrange a court date for you and tell you what documentation you need to submit to them in advance. On the day, the registrar will arrange for the parent to make himself known to her and will then you will be brought to mee the judge in chambers (a little room out back where the judge will be sitting on a rickety chair at a formica table). You will have to swear under oath that you do not know the whereabouts of the other parent and a court order will issue shortly after giving you permission to get a passport for the 'infant' whereby the said 'infant' might be 17 as my daughter was! Post off the passport office and you're done.
It sounds nerve wracking, but I've done it twice and found the court staff and the judge very kind and helpful.
Good luck.

thanks for advice,much better than when i asked passport office what to do.all they kept saying was guardian must sign,guardian must sign. i have a few months until he needs passport so circuit court it is.thanks again.

I think you can also just contact your solicitor and you swear to be his guardian, sign few forms and that is it. Not 100% sure but worth a phonecall maybe

The passport office would not accept that. They will be looking for the person listed on the birth cert of the child as the mother.

Note 7 on the passport application form:

Where the parents were never married to each other
The written consent of both parents (if both named on birth certificate) is required, or:
The written consent of the mother and
A special Affidavit Form AFF-1 in which the mother swears that she is the only legal guardian of the child, witnessed by a solicitor/commissioner for oaths.

Click to expand...

The father doesn't get a look in any where. I think you need to see a solicitor asap.

One of my friends has this problem last year. You need to contact your solicitor and make a trip to the Family courts to get the necessary forms signed.

It's a district court application - and you don't need a solicitor - the district court office staff will help you process your application, and then it's a short hearing before the judge - if this is too daunting, then go to your solicitor.