The State Department is rolling out another pro-family policy Friday, this time revoking thousands of passports from parents who owe a significant amount of child support.
The department will prioritize parents who owe six figures or more in child support, encompassing roughly 2,700 American passport holders, according to the Associated Press. The revocations are set to begin on Friday and will soon expand to include parents who owe more than $2,500. (RELATED: ‘Passport Killer’: New Bill Would Grant Marco Rubio Power To Revoke Passports For Terrorist Supporters)
Up until Friday, this penalty was only applicable to Americans applying for new passports if they owed child support.
“Under President Trump, the Department of State is using commonsense tools to support American families and strengthen compliance with U.S. laws,” a department press release reads. “This includes preventing those who owe substantial amounts of court-ordered child support from neglecting their legal and moral obligations to their children.”
SAN YSIDRO, CA – JANUARY 8: Travelers take out their passports before checking in at San Diego International Airport January 8, 2006 in San Diego, California. Beginning on January 23rd, United States passengers traveling by air will be required to show a passport when traveling to Mexico or the Caribbean. Congress is also pushing to require passports when traveling by land or sea to from the United States to Mexico or Canada by early 2008. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)
In order to receive a passport, U.S. law already requires Americans to comply with child support obligations, giving the State Department the right to revoke passports from Americans who owe more than $2,500. Now the State Department, in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is ramping up the pressure against parents with “outstanding child support debt.”
“This action supports the welfare of American children by exacting real consequences for child support delinquency under existing federal law,” the press release reads. (RELATED: Rubio Takes Home ‘Peace And Dignity’ After Meeting With Pope Leo)
Eligibility for international travel will only be restored after any outstanding child support debt is paid.
“The State Department is putting American families first through our passport process,” the press release reads.
As of 2021, over 4 million parents received child support payments totaling over $20 billion nationwide, according to the census. At the same time, there are an estimated 5.5 million delinquent parents who owe a total of $114 billion in child support, according to 2018 figures from the Office of Child Support Enforcement.