Texas Child Support Passport Denial: Removal and Exceptions

If you owe more than $2,500 in past-due child support in Texas, you can be blocked from getting or renewing a U.S. passport. This is Texas child support passport denial: the Office of the Attorney General certifies your arrears to the federal government, your name goes into the database checked at every passport application, and no passport issues until you pay the debt down and the state asks for your removal. The program has collected nearly $621 million nationwide since it began, with $30 million in 2024 alone.¹

Why Your Passport Was Flagged

The trigger is a hard number. Under 42 U.S.C. § 652(k), once a parent’s child support arrears exceed $2,500, the state child support agency certifies the debt to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which passes it to the State Department. The State Department must then refuse to issue a passport, and it may revoke, restrict, or limit one already issued.² The companion regulation, 22 CFR 51.60(a)(2), bars issuance of any passport other than one for direct return to the United States.³

In Texas, the Child Support Division of the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) identifies parents who cross the threshold and certifies the cases.⁴ Your name then lands in the Consular Lookout and Support System (CLASS), which is checked on every passport application.⁵ The State Department makes no independent judgment about whether you owe the money; it acts on the certification it receives.⁶

You should have received a “Pre-Offset Notice” before your name was submitted. That notice lists the debt amount, spells out the enforcement remedies that can be used against you, and explains how to contest the amount.⁷

What a Denial or Revocation Looks Like

When you apply and the CLASS check flags you, the application is denied but not immediately destroyed. The Passport Agency holds it for 90 days. If you resolve the arrears and get released from the program during that window, your passport can be processed in two to five business days for expedited service, or up to ten business days for regular processing. Miss the 90 days and the application is discarded; you start over, fees and all.⁸

A passport you already hold is not automatically pulled from your drawer, but it becomes vulnerable the moment you bring it in for anything. Renewal, adding pages, repairing a damaged book, changing your name, or updating a photo all give the State Department the chance to revoke it.¹ Revocation notices go out by email or to the mailing address on your most recent application. Once revoked, the passport is dead even after you pay the debt. You have to apply for a new one.⁶

How to Get Off the Passport Denial List

Removal is not automatic and not always fast. A few points matter more than the rest:

Paying in full is the surest route. The State Department’s guidance is direct: pay your outstanding child support to the state agency, the state notifies HHS, HHS updates its records, and HHS reports the change to the State Department. Expect a minimum of two to three weeks from payment to clearance.⁶
Getting below $2,500 does not remove you. Federal law does not require the state to withdraw the certification just because your balance dropped under the threshold. Removal happens when the balance reaches zero or the state affirmatively deletes or excludes the case.⁷
Partial payments or payment plans depend on the state. Some agencies negotiate payment plans and request withdrawal short of full payment; others require partial or full payment first. The federal program leaves this to each state’s discretion, case by case.⁷
Only the certifying state can request your withdrawal. If more than one state has submitted arrears against you, every one of them has to request removal before a passport will issue.⁷

Who to Contact in Texas

Passport denial cases in Texas are handled by the State Case Unit (SCU 590) inside the OAG Child Support Division:⁹

Phone: 866-445-4556
Email: scu-passport@oag.texas.gov
Mail: Office of the Attorney General, CSD-SCU 590, PO Box 12027, Austin, TX 78711-2027

The Texas Arrears Payment Incentive Program

Texas runs a program that can shrink your balance faster if you qualify. The Arrears Payment Incentive Program, administered by the OAG, gives a dollar-for-dollar matching credit on payments toward arrears the state is entitled to keep: for every dollar you pay on state-owed arrears, the state forgives another dollar.¹⁰

The limits are real. Matching credits apply only to state-owed arrears, not to arrears owed to the custodial parent. You must pay your current month’s child support and medical support in full before any additional payment qualifies for a match. Tax intercepts, liens, and other involuntary collections do not count. You need to make at least one qualifying payment every 180 days to stay in. To be eligible you need a final Texas child support order, a current address on file with the OAG, at least $500 in state-owed arrears, and you cannot be incarcerated or in an active bankruptcy case. The application is Form 1575.¹¹

Emergency and Hardship Exceptions

The program allows narrow exceptions for genuine emergencies. A temporary, limited-validity passport may be issued in a life-or-death situation, typically the serious illness, injury, or death of an immediate family member abroad. You will need substantial documentation, including items such as a notarized statement, a death certificate or doctor’s letter, and proof of the family relationship.¹²

If you are already overseas and your passport is revoked or cannot be renewed, the State Department may issue a limited-validity passport for direct return to the United States. It is not valid for any other travel.⁶ State agencies also have discretion to grant emergency releases in situations such as administrative errors or immediate family emergencies.¹

A Texas Court Order Alone Will Not Clear You

Passport denial is a federal enforcement action, and a Texas judge cannot lift it directly. A state court can modify your support order or forgive certain arrears, but that ruling does not by itself remove you from the federal Passport Denial Program. The reduction has to be processed through the OAG, and the OAG must then formally request your withdrawal before HHS and the State Department act.⁷ Plan your travel timeline around that certification chain, not around the date of a court hearing.

1
Congressional Research Service. Child Support Enforcement Passport Denial Program
2
Cornell Law Institute. 42 U.S. Code § 652
3
Cornell Law Institute. 22 CFR § 51.60
4
Texas Attorney General. How We Enforce
5
U.S. Department of State. 7 FAM 1750 – Passport Denial for Child Support Arrears
6
U.S. Department of State. Passports and Child Support
7
Administration for Children and Families. Passport Denial Program 101
8
Administration for Children and Families. Overview of the Passport Denial Program
9
Administration for Children and Families. State Child Support Agency Passport Denial Program Contacts
10
Texas Attorney General. Arrears Payment Incentive Program Application
11
Cornell Law Institute. 1 Tex. Admin. Code § 55.143 – Arrears Payment Incentive Program
12
Justia. Passport Denial Based on Unpaid Child Support