BargainAirTicket is an independent travel agency, we are not Avianca and are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by Avianca. Rules for children flying are set by the airline, carry real safety consequences, and change; always confirm current requirements at avianca.com. You can book yourself there at no cost. Because a child under 15 cannot fly Avianca without a qualifying adult, our agents check your case by phone and set the booking up right, for a service fee quoted before you're charged.

Children flying alone on Avianca, the rule nobody expects

Here is the headline most families learn too late: Avianca has no unaccompanied minor service on any route, and no recommended minor program either. There is no chaperone to hand your child to. This page lays out exactly who can and cannot fly, from what age, how a child under 15 does travel, and the documents that decide whether they board.

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    First question: has the traveler turned 15 before the trip starts?

    15 or older, can fly solo

    From age 15, and having reached 15 before the itinerary begins, the traveler flies as a normal passenger. No special service, and none is offered.

    14 or under, needs an adult

    Must travel with a parent or a responsible adult over 18, booked in that adult's reservation. Avianca will not carry the child alone, there is no service to do it.

    No unaccompanied minor service on any Avianca route No recommended minor program either, unlike many US airlines Flying alone is allowed only from age 15, reached before the trip A companion for a child 14 or under must be over 18 International without both parents: authenticated exit permit A child 14 or under is booked inside the adult's reservation

    Avianca runs zero unaccompanied minor flights.

    Not a limited service, not a seasonal one, none at all. A child too young to have an adult with them simply cannot fly Avianca. Know that before you buy, not at the check-in counter with a packed bag and a crying eight-year-old.
    How a child under 15 actually travels
    Find the qualifying adult

    Someone over 18 who will fly the whole itinerary with the child. A 16 or 17 year old sibling does not count for Avianca, and neither does an adult meeting the child only at the destination.

    Book them together

    The child 14 or under goes inside the adult's reservation, not on a separate ticket of their own. This is how Avianca ties the two travelers on the same record.

    Gather the documents

    Domestic within Colombia or Ecuador needs the child's civil registry, birth certificate or ID card by age. International needs a passport for the child and, if a parent is missing, an authenticated exit permit.

    At the airport

    The adult stays with the child the entire way, through check-in, security, immigration and the gate. Avianca provides no escort, so nobody takes over if the adult steps away.

    The age rule, and who counts as an adult

    Avianca's current policy, in plain English. Ages can change, so confirm at avianca.com.

    Solo travel starts at 15:

    A traveler may fly on their own only from age 15, and must have turned 15 before the itinerary starts. Reaching 15 mid-trip does not help, the birthday has to fall before the first flight. From that point they book and fly like any adult passenger.

    14 or under travels only with an adult over 18:

    Anyone 14 or younger must travel with a parent or a responsible adult over 18, carrying parental authorization. The companion age bar is over 18, so a 17 year old, however capable, does not qualify as the responsible adult under Avianca's rule.

    The child rides in the adult's booking:

    A minor 14 or under is booked inside the accompanying adult's reservation, not on a standalone ticket. If you find a child on a separate record with no adult attached, that booking will not stand at the airport.

    No service to fall back on:

    Because there is no unaccompanied minor program, there is no fee to pay and no form to file that would let a young child fly alone. The answer is simply no. If that blocks your plan, call us and we will look at airlines that do run a supervised program.

    We never guess a child's eligibility. Tell us the birthdate and the travel dates, and we confirm it against Avianca's rule before anything is booked.

    Why this catches families off guard

    Most airlines run a chaperone program, so people expect Avianca to have one.

    On American, Delta and most US carriers, a parent can put a child of roughly 5 to 14 on a flight alone under a paid unaccompanied minor service, staff walk them to the gate and hand them to a named adult at the other end. That mental model is so common that families book Avianca the same way, then discover at the counter that no such service exists here. Avianca offers neither an unaccompanied minor service nor the softer recommended minor option that some airlines give older children. The child either travels with a qualifying adult over 18, or does not travel on Avianca.

    This matters most for the situations people plan around: a child spending the summer with grandparents in Bogotá, a teenager flying to a parent in another city, a family splitting up so one adult flies ahead. If the child is under 15 and no adult over 18 can accompany the whole way, Avianca will not be the answer, and it is far better to learn that while you can still choose a different carrier.

    Policies are set by Avianca and can change, confirm current rules at avianca.com or with us on the call.

    The documents that decide whether they board

    Domestic within Colombia or Ecuador works differently from international.

    Domestic, Colombia or Ecuador:

    A child aged 0 to 7 travels on a civil registry or birth certificate. A child aged 8 to 17 uses an ID card. And for anyone 14 or under, the responsible companion over 18 still has to be there, the document alone is not enough.

    International, every minor:

    Every minor aged 0 to 17 needs a valid passport, no exceptions by age. Check the expiry well ahead, a passport that is valid but close to expiring can still be refused entry by the destination country.

    The exit permit, the real trap:

    When a minor travels internationally without one or both parents, an authenticated exit permit signed by the absent parent or guardian is generally required. The exact form, whether it must be notarized, apostilled or translated, varies by the child's country of residence and is enforced by that government, not by Avianca. This is the piece families most often miss.

    Confirm with the consulate:

    Because the permit rules belong to the country, not the airline, the reliable source is the consulate of the country of residence or destination. Do not rely on a friend's past experience, the requirement changes and differs by nationality.

    Entry and exit-permit rules for minors are set by governments and change; confirm with the relevant consulate and at avianca.com before you travel.

    Before you book, the checklist

    Two minutes now prevents a child being turned away at the counter.

    • The child's age on the travel date, solo travel is only from 15, reached before the trip
    • A qualifying adult over 18 for any child 14 or under, booked in the same reservation
    • The right ID by age, civil registry or birth certificate 0 to 7, ID card 8 to 17 domestically, passport for all international minors
    • The authenticated exit permit if the child flies internationally without one or both parents

    If there is no adult to send, decide early. Since Avianca cannot carry an unaccompanied child, the only fix is either an adult over 18 for the whole trip or a different airline that runs a supervised minor program. Both take planning, so raise it with us before you commit, not the week of the flight when options and prices have narrowed.

    Frequently asked

    Does Avianca have an unaccompanied minor service?+
    No. Avianca does not offer an unaccompanied minor service, and it does not offer a recommended minor service either, on any route. That means a child who cannot travel with a qualifying adult cannot fly Avianca at all. This is unusual, most large airlines run some form of chaperone program, so families often assume Avianca has one and are turned away. Call us before you buy and we will confirm whether your child can travel and set the booking up correctly.
    What age can a child fly alone on Avianca?+
    A traveler can fly alone on Avianca only from age 15, and must have turned 15 before the itinerary starts. Anyone 14 or younger has to travel with a parent or a responsible adult over 18, with parental authorization, and be booked inside that adult's reservation. Ages and rules can change, so confirm at avianca.com, or call us and we will check it against your child's exact trip and dates.
    Can a 14-year-old fly alone on Avianca?+
    No. A 14-year-old cannot fly alone on Avianca because there is no unaccompanied minor service to place them in. They must travel with a parent or a responsible adult over 18 who is booked in the same reservation. If no such adult is available for the trip, Avianca is not an option and we will help you look at carriers that do run a chaperone program.
    What documents does a minor need to fly Avianca?+
    For domestic travel within Colombia or Ecuador, a child aged 0 to 7 uses a civil registry or birth certificate and a child aged 8 to 17 uses an ID card, and anyone 14 or under still needs the responsible companion. For international travel, every minor aged 0 to 17 needs a valid passport, and a minor traveling without one or both parents generally needs an authenticated exit permit signed by the parent or guardian. The exact format varies by country of residence and is enforced by the government, not the airline, so confirm with the consulate. Call us and we will flag what your route requires.

    Contact options

    Reach Avianca directly, or let us confirm eligibility and set up the booking.

    Contact Avianca directly

    The airline's own official channels, free.

    Websiteavianca.com
    Reservations (US)1-866-919-0081
    Minors infoavianca.com › Traveling with minors
    AppAvianca app (iOS / Android)

    These are Avianca's own channels; confirm current rules for minors at avianca.com.

    Or let a BargainAirTicket agent do it

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    BargainAirTicket is an independent travel marketplace operated by Bookmecheapest LLC, not an airline and not a representative of Avianca or any airline. "Avianca", "LifeMiles" and "Star Alliance" are trademarks of their respective owners, used here only to describe the ticketing support we offer. Rules for children travelling, ages, restrictions, forms and fees, are set by the airline, carry safety consequences, and change; entry and exit-permit requirements for minors are set by governments. Always confirm current requirements at avianca.com and with the relevant consulate. We assist with bookings on any airline for a service fee, quoted before you're charged.

    Sourced from Avianca's published policy, last checked July 13, 2026. Airlines change these rules often, and we confirm current terms on every call.

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