The hammer is finally coming down on those who think they can skip out on their legal and moral obligations to their own children while enjoying the luxury of international travel.

The U.S. State Department announced Friday that it has officially begun the process ofrevoking the passportsof thousands of Americans who owe significant amounts of unpaid child support.

Starting this week, the Department will begin revoking the passports of thousands of Americans who owe substantial unpaid child support, with an initial focus on those racking up $100,000 or more in arrears.

According to figures provided to the State Department by the Department of Health and Human Services, this will impact roughly 2,700 passport holders right out of the gate. And that’s just the beginning.

The program is being expanded aggressively to enforce the long-existing $2,500 threshold set by federal law.

According to theState Department:

Under President Trump, the Department of State is using commonsense tools to support American families and strengthen compliance with U.S. laws. This includes preventing those who owe substantial amounts of court-ordered child support from neglecting their legal and moral obligations to their children.

U.S. law requires Americans to comply with child support obligations in order to receive a U.S. passport and allows the Department of State to revoke the passport of an individual who owes more than $2,500 in child support. Under the Trump Administration, the Department of State is coordinating with the Department of Health and Human Services on an unprecedented scale to revoke the passports of Americans who have racked up significant outstanding child support debt. This action supports the welfare of American children by exacting real consequences for child support delinquency under existing federal law.

Any American with significant child support debt should arrange payment to the relevant state or states now to prevent passport revocation. Once a passport is revoked, it may no longer be used for travel. Eligibility for a new passport will only be restored after child support debt is paid to the relevant state child support enforcement agency and the individual is no longer delinquent according to HHS records.

The State Department is putting American families first through our passport process.

Source: The Gateway Pundit