Q&A

Can you get passport owing child support?

Can you get passport owing child support?

If you owe $2,500 or more in child support, you are not eligible to receive a U.S. passport. Pay your child support arrears to the appropriate state child support enforcement agency before applying for your passport.

Can you get a passport if you owe child support?

“If you owe more than $2500 in child support arrears you will not be able to get a passport”. The truth is if you owe $100, 500, $1000, in arrears they won’t take your name off the list. What you can do is make a deal with the custodial parent to pay off the arrears in full.

Can a person who owes child support travel abroad?

Answer: If a person who owes child support has a valid passport and the child support enforcement agency does not revoke it, he is free to travel overseas. Also, owing child support is not cause for arrest.

Can a child support office revoke your passport?

Answer: The child support office cannot revoke or suspend a passport. The law is that anyone with over $2500 in arrears of child support is entered into the passport denial list. To be removed from that list and obtain a passport, that parent must pay the arrears in full.

What happens if you owe child support in more than one state?

If you owe child support in more than one U.S. state, then it is likely that all of them reported your name to the Passport Denial program. In that case, you will need to negotiate with all of them before you can be cleared to receive a U.S. passport.

What happens if I owe child support on my passport?

Answer: Owing child support may result to revocation or denial of passport application. Please contact the State Child Support Enforcement Agency handling your case regarding the issue. You may also call the National Passport Information Center at 1-877-487-2778 for guidance.

Can you fly to China if you owe child support?

Answer: If you still owe over $2500 in child support arrears, you will not be eligible to apply for passport. Without a passport, you will not be allowed to board a flight to China. Please contact the State Child Support Enforcement Agency handling your case for more information.

Can a US citizen be denied a passport for child support?

Even being a U.S. citizen is not, however, enough in some cases. Under a program called “Passport Denial,” authorized by a 1997 amendment to a law called the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), any person who owes child support in an amount greater than $2,500 will be denied a U.S.

If you owe child support in more than one U.S. state, then it is likely that all of them reported your name to the Passport Denial program. In that case, you will need to negotiate with all of them before you can be cleared to receive a U.S. passport.