US to begin revoking passports belonging to thousands of parents who owe child support payments
The process will initially target those who owe $100,000 before being expanded to those who owe $2,500 or more
The Donald Trump administration will start revoking passports of US nationals who owe more than $2,500 in child support payments.
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The plans could be brought into law as soon as Friday for those who owe $100,000 or more, which will apply to approximately 2,700 American passport holders, according to figures supplied to the US state department.
Further enforcements will then be brought into play for those who owe $2,500 in unpaid support, a threshold set by a 1996 law signed by Bill Clinton.
It is not yet clear how many passport holders owe more than $2,500.
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In its statement, the department said that the agency "is using common sense tools to support American families and strengthen compliance with US laws".
It added that revoking the passports "supports the welfare of American children by exacting real consequences for child support delinquency under existing federal law."
President Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act 30 years ago, a law that enacted significant changes to the federal social safety net.
Included in the changes was a provision that the department be notified of people with delinquent child support debts.
However, enforcement in the past has usually focused on blocking those with child support debt from renewing or applying for a new passport, rather than having it revoked.
The US estimates that the passport rule has led to the collection of more than $382 million in child support payments since its inception.
The AP reported that around 4.3 million people with outstanding child support debt are being tracked, and that nearly 100 passport applications are denied every day over child support.
Those with passports revoked will be notified that they will not be able to use their documents for travel and will have to apply for a new ome once their child support debts are confirmed as paid.
If abroad at the time of revocation, they will need to visit a US embassy or consulate to obtain an emergency travel document that allows them to return to the US.