The US State Department has begun revoking the passports of registered child sex offenders. Under the new law, registered sex offenders who have been convicted of an offense against a minor will no longer be able to use their current passports.
Instead, they will have to apply for new sex offender passports that identify them as registered child sex offenders. The new law will not limit the ability of registered child sex offenders to leave the country. However, the identifying marker in the new passports is very likely to prevent affected people from being allowed to enter other countries.
The only convicted sex offenders in the United States who are not able to get passports at all are people who have been convicted of sex tourism crimes. Most convicted felons are able to get normal passports in the United States. The main exception is people who have been convicted of international drug trafficking.
The goal of the change is to help curb child exploitation overseas. It is a noble and worthy goal, but it is unclear just how much effect the law will have on children abroad.
The terrible crime led to the creation of numerous state sex offender registries. Those registries can all be accessed and searched through the FBI website.
