What Are Parent and Child Permits?
Some permit programs are set up so a resident needs to hold one type of permit (the parent) before they can get another (the child). A common example is a guest or visitor permit that requires the resident to already have an active residential permit.
If your program works this way, you'll see these connections reflected directly on the permit record in Portal.
What You'll See on the Permit Details Page
Open a child permit's Details page and you'll see a card showing its connected parent permit.
Open a parent permit and you'll see the child permits currently linked to it.
Most of the time this will just show a healthy, active connection, and there's nothing to do. Occasionally you may see a warning instead, letting you know the connection is missing or the parent permit is no longer active. This should be uncommon. It typically only comes up if a permit was issued before the parent requirement was in place, or a parent permit expired or was cancelled. If you see this warning, the sections below walk you through how to fix it.
Issuing a Child Permit from a Parent
Child permits are issued from the parent, not as a standalone application:
Locate the resident's active parent permit in Manage Permits and open its Details page.
Select Actions > Issue Eligibility-Based Permit.
Choose the child permit type, permission, and cycle.
Complete the remaining fields and issue as normal.
If the resident is eligible for more than one type of child permit, you can issue one of each from the same parent. Portal will hide or flag anything that's already been issued for that parent, so there's no risk of accidentally duplicating a permit.
Linking a Child Permit to a Parent
If you're looking at a child permit showing a warning like this, the fix has to happen from the parent side, not the child. The Link action only lives on the parent permit's Details page. Start by noting the child permit's number, then:
If the resident already has another active parent permit, navigate to that parent's Details page and link the child from there.
If they don't have an active parent permit at all, you'll need to issue one first, then link the existing child permit to it.
To link a child permit to its parent:
Open the parent permit's Details page.
Select Link in the Child Permits card.
Enter the child permit number.
Confirm.
Once confirmed, the connection is made right away and the warning banner clears. If your program requires the parent and child permit to share the same license plate, a permit with a different plate on file won't be able to link until that's corrected.
What Your Residents Will See
If a resident's child permit isn't properly connected to a parent, they'll see a message on their own account prompting them to link an existing parent permit or apply for a new one. In most cases, residents with an online account can resolve this themselves without needing to contact you.
This doesn't apply to permit holders without an online account. If their connection needs fixing, you'll need to make the link yourself in Portal using the steps above.
A Couple of Things You Can Turn On
Three related options are available if your program would benefit from them. Just reach out to your Passport contact to request any of:
Auto-renew can now be enabled for parent and child permit types.
A parent permit has historically been limited to one child permit of each type. If your program needs to allow more than one child of the same type per parent, that flexibility is now available.
If your program requires the parent and child permit to share the same license plate, you can also have it configured so residents can't edit the plate on the child themselves, since it updates automatically whenever the parent's does.
FAQ
Q: Where do I issue a child permit?
A: From the parent permit's Details page, not from a new application. See "Issuing a Child Permit from a Parent" above.
Q: A permit holder without an online account has a child permit that needs to be connected to its parent. What do I do?
A: They won't see a self-service option, so you'll need to link it for them in Portal. See "Linking a Child Permit to a Parent" above.
Q: I linked a child permit to a parent, but the resident says they still see a warning.
A: Ask them to refresh their account. If the message doesn't clear, reach out to Passport support.
Q: Do I need to check every parent and child permit for this?
A: No. This warning should be uncommon. You'll typically only run into it when setting up a new program, if a resident lets a parent permit expire, or for permit holders managed entirely through the back office.
Q: Can I choose which permit types require a parent permit?
A: That relationship is set up with Passport as part of your program configuration. Reach out to your Passport contact if you want to add or change it.
Q: Can I turn on auto-renew or allow more than one child permit per parent?
A: Yes, both are available. Contact your Passport representative to have either one turned on for your program.
Q: Can I stop residents from editing the license plate on a child permit?
A: Yes. If your program requires the parent and child permit to share the same plate, you can have it configured so residents can't edit the plate on the child themselves, since it updates automatically whenever the parent's does. Contact your Passport representative to have this turned on.
Q: What happens if a permit holder doesn't fix a broken link before their renewal date?
A: A child permit cannot be renewed, through auto-renew or manually, until a valid parent has been linked to it. The parent permit itself can still be renewed as normal, parents don't need a child to renew. Once the child's link is fixed, it can be renewed normally. If that happens after the child's auto-renew window for that cycle has already passed, it will need to be renewed manually.
Q: Will an email go out when a link breaks or when it's fixed?
A: No. Nothing is emailed on either end. Permit holders will only see this reflected on their dashboard, and you'll only see it on the permit's Details page in Portal.
Q: Can a child permit last longer than its parent?
A: It can, temporarily. As long as the parent is active at the time the child comes up for renewal, the child renews for a full normal cycle, even if that pushes its end date past the parent's current one. The catch comes on the child's next renewal: if the parent hasn't also renewed by then, that renewal will be blocked until the parent is renewed or replaced.