The U.S. State Department will begin revoking the passports of Americans who owe "significant child support debt."
The department issued a notice on May 7 stating that federal regulations do not allow people who owe more than $2,500 in unpaid child support to be issued a passport and that it may revoke your valid passport.
"Notices about passport revocations will be sent from the Department of State directly to the passport holder via email or to the mailing address provided on the most recent passport application," the State Department said in the notice posted to its website.
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According to reporting from The Associated Press, the department will begin revocations on Friday, May 8, and be focused on those who owe $100,000 or more. The revocation plan, however, will soon be "greatly expanded" to cover parents who owe more than $2,500.
The $2,500 threshold was established by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1996. According to the New York Times, the law included a provision that the State Department be notified of people with delinquent child support debts and stated the secretary of state could "revoke, restrict, or limit" a previously-issued passport.
"Under President Trump, the Department of State is using commonsense tools to support American families and strengthen compliance with U.S. laws," the department said in a May 7 news release. "This includes preventing those who owe substantial amounts of court-ordered child support from neglecting their legal and moral obligations to their children."
The State Department said it is coordinating with the Department of Health and Human Services on an "unprecedented scale" to revoke the passports, stating this action "supports the welfare of American children by exacting real consequences for child support delinquency under existing federal law."
What to do if your passport gets revoked
According to the State Department's website, if your passport is revoked because you owe more than $2,500 in child support, you will need to contact the state where you owe child support to pay your debt.
After you have paid the state, you will be eligible for a new passport. A revoked passport, however, may no longer be used for travel even if child support debt has been paid.
People who are abroad and receive notification that their passport has been revoked need to contact the state where they owe child support and may also contact their nearest U.S. embassy or consulate for passport application procedures, the State Department says on its website.
Gabe Hauari is a national trending news reporter at USA TODAY. You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at Gdhauari@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: US to begin revoking passports of parents who owe child support
