We have updated our main International Travel section. It features:
- List of Schengen Nations (allowing entry to registrants);
- Resources (including a CA DOJ Travel Notification Form); and
- User Submitted Travel Reports.
This post is linked from the Main Menu at the top of the site.
1. The 26 Schengen Nations (which allow registrants to visit)
As an agreement, Schengen was signed among the five out of ten countries of the European Union members back then, on the 14th June 1985. Under the Schengen agreement, travelling from one Schengen country to another is done without any passport and immigration controls or any other formalities previously required.
[row] [column size=”1/5″ center=”no” class=””]Austria
Belgium
Czech republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Italy
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Note: US Citizens are visa exempt when visiting the Schengen area for up to 90 days in a 180 day period (List of Countries, Section B or map). The European Commission is proposing creating a European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) for such travelers, beginning in 2021 – which may or may not take criminal convictions into account. ETIAS Fact Sheet April 2018 – July 2018
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2. Resources
[row][column size=”1/2″ center=”no” class=””]Forms
Publications
- RTAG Travel Matrix
- IML Dispatch (SMART Office, Feb 2016)
- ETIAS
Old Posts
- International Travel after IML (2016)
- International Travel – Mexico (2014)
- International Travel (2013)
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3. NEW: User Submitted Travel Reports
If you have traveled internationally post-IML we invite you to share your travel experience on the form below. Submissions will be published as a separate post with opportunity for targeted / country specific discussion.
If you have already filled out our previous (unpublished) travel form, please do so again here for publication.
Not sure what to do.. I am listed in the National database under my old name from Texas but am no longer required to register in my new state in WA. I called WA to give a 21 day notice and they said since I do not register any longer, they would not be taking my paperwork. Texas told me since I do not live there, they wont take my paperwork either. I do not have a special marked passport but under the IML rules, i am a “covered” offender, because I am listed on the national site because Texas will never take me off. To add to the confusion, Texas only has my old name on their site.. I changed my name once I got off the registry here in WA… Any suggestions on what I should do?
I think you should read the law yourself and try to understand if it applies to you. If unsure, pay a lawyer to advise you. Find one that has experience with IML, preferably.
As I understand the law, you don’t have to give 21 day notice because you are not required to register in any jurisdiction. You said so yourself. WA doesn’t require you to register. Texas doesn’t require you to register. The fact that you are still on the Texas ML and the national database does not mean you are required to register in that jurisdiction. You only have to register in Texas if you live there or you visit long enough to trigger the registration requirement.
Having said all that, I am not a lawyer and you should not construe my thoughts on the matter as legal advice.
Also, even if you are truly not required to give 21 day notice, there’s no guarantee that the USMS or the CBP won’t screw things up and subject you to nightmarish torture, inquisition, detention, or arrest.
CR.. I thought since I do not register any longer, I would be exempt, but here is the law
“included in the
National Sex Offender Registry, on the basis of an offense
against a minor. ” — this is the part where I am have no idea what to do about?
:
(f) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘sex offender’’
means—
(1) a covered sex offender; or
(2) an individual required to register under the sex offender
registration program of any jurisdiction or included in the
National Sex Offender Registry, on the basis of an offense
against a minor.
https://www.congress.gov/114/plaws/publ119/PLAW-114publ119.pdf
I see. That’s why it’s good to read the law. It doesn’t say what I thought it did.
It seems you are given no way to comply with the travel notice requirement. That your name doesn’t match what is in the registry further complicates things. I wouldn’t bet that it lets you off the hook.
I wondered why Texas started putting people who had moved out of state back on the list a few years ago after having already removed them previously when they moved away. It may have been to close what they viewed as a loophole that was allowing people to start a new life and escape the scarlet letter they had been assigned for life. A conspiracy among some states, perhaps.
It’s good that you are seeking legal counsel. I think it’s your only route to clarity.
That’s in the section regarding how the Angel Watch Center operates with respect to the travel notifications.
@notsurewhattoddo & @CR:
As @Tuna says, the snippet @notsurewhattoddo posted is from Section 4 regarding Angel Watch. That definition is reused in Section 8 regarding State and passports. It gets a little confusing there because Section 8 rewords Section 240 of Title 22, “Foreign Relations and Intercourse” (an ironic title, I say). The RC’s responsibilities and requirements are in Section 6, and there are no specific definitions provided or created. Thus definitions for Section 6 are way at the top in the definitions for the Act, or are inside SORNA.
In short, it’s my opinion that the use of that definition for AW and State means that they will use the NSOR information for their purposes even if one is no longer required to comply with the provisions of IML. That could (probably: does) mean that though @notsurewhattoddo is not required to submit IML notification, AW may (probably: does) still send out whatever angelic notifications, and State could (probably: does not) issue a Scarlet-letter passport.
One would have to piece IML’s edits into AWA to get a full and correct reading, but IMO @Tuna’s observation seems to me to point to that definition not mattering on @notsurewhattoddo’s end.
Actually, the text reused in Section 8 (regarding who should get the scarlet letter passport) has one key difference: the use of “and” instead of “or”:
‘‘(c) DEFINED TERMS.—In this section—
‘‘(1) the term ‘covered sex offender’ means an individual
who—
‘‘(A) is a sex offender, as defined in section 4(f) of
the International Megan’s Law to Prevent Child Exploitation and Other Sexual Crimes Through Advanced
Notification of Traveling Sex Offenders; and
‘‘(B) is currently required to register under the sex
offender registration program of any jurisdiction;
So if he is not required to register, he should not get a marked passport. Having said that, I believe posted last year, was a report of at least one instance where a person did get a marked passport, but this was later corrected after either a complaint to State or a suit.
@Tuna:
I wasn’t trying to parse the usage of the definition in Section 8, merely pointing out that the definition created in Section 4 is reused elsewhere by direct reference. Given there is no similar wording in the Section RCs care about, the specific definition doesn’t apply; one would need to follow the Act-level ones instead.
But to your point, that “and” would seem to mean State cannot issue marked passports, meanwhile AW can still send out nasty-grams about us to the world, even if no longer required to register. I don’t personally fret over it because I have no ability to control or change it. AW and State will do what the law says until the law changes or gets struck. I absolutely dislike it, but I have many other things in life which better warrant my hand-wringing.
You may try to contact attorney Richard Gladden in Texas. It appears Texas is claiming they dont have the resources for department of public safety to remove people that move or die. They seem to remove people just fine if their term on the registry has been complete. I was removed within a few weeks of my local Texas police department submitting the removal request. You will probably need a court order to speed up being removed. Did you notify the Texas police department where you did your last registration of the move?
Hello Chris F – I am working on a consultation with Richard Gladden. Thanks for the referral. My court order is from WA state to be removed; I am sure it is not valid for Texas since I am a lifetime registrant there. I did notify them back in 2005 when I moved away and was just re-added to the registry in 2011.
I’m in the same situation, but with different states. Current Nevada resident and released from state registry, but still listed in Florida. Wish I had an answer for you, but have only traveled domestically recently. Was wondering the same though for future trips. I find it amazing that literally no one seems to have an answer for this question which I am assuming will come up for many more people in the next 5-10 years.
“I find it amazing that literally no one seems to have an answer for this question …”
I think the answer is spelled out in the law itself, which is why I suggested in my previous response to read it.
But anyway, an experience-based answer, which seems to be what you want, may not be forthcoming for several reasons. First, it is likely that only a small percentage of all registrants frequent this web site, or are even aware of it. Next, not many of us here manage to get out of having to register, so we don’t encounter the circumstance you ask about. Finally, it’s probable that most who do get off the list and have experience with international travel afterwards stop coming here, so they never see such questions.
I will not espouse legal advice on this regarding the person in Washington who is still on the Texas registry though not on the Washington registry; however, I will tell you what I learned that was legal advice given to me when it comes to being removed from the registry and travel notification: Travel notification is not required.
Still being listed on the Texas registry may present a challenge to the individual and throw a wrench in the works with the United States Marshals, as @CR said, but if they’re off the registry, travel notification by theory and definition is not required as was given to me through legal advice.
I have called the Attorney Generals office a few times and they said if your state doesn’t require you to register, you don’t have to report anything to anyone
Left Paris for Croatia this morning. As I exited they scanned passports and again not a second look. Flew cze airlines with a stop in Prague scanned again no issues. Landed in Split scanned again no issues. On a boat cruising the Croatian islands the next 8 days and not anticipating any issues until we come back to the lovely USA. We saw USA play Sweden in La Havre, Toured the D-day beaches and the Palace of Versailles while in France. Did a lot in 2 1/2 days.
@steve
Happy to hear that Croatia is problem free. We are heading there in September. Keep the good times rolling!
If you want any Croatia tips let me know. Moderator, you have my approval to release email info to Mike G.
@steve
Thanks a lot. The moderators are not too keen about giving out email addresses, but if they do, I’ll be in touch. We are planning to visit Dubrovnik and Vicko (driving past Split), both of which have ports, so maybe you’ll stop there. Then we are planning to head for Plitvice Lakes National Park, but that is somewhat inland, so you probably won’t get there.
We aren’t anticipating any problems, but we are planning to visit 5 other non-Schengen countries besides Croatia, so I’ll be holding my breath at times…
Mike G, after your trip please let us know how the non-Schengen countries go, how you are arriving there (car?), whether you have a marked passport, etc. Thanks!
@E
Will keep you posted (assuming I’m not detained somewhere with no internet access 🙁 ). We will be traveling by tour bus and I do have the marked passport.
Since I was a kid, I have had a life long dream of visiting south asia. There is something beautiful about the culture, the differences but connectives of the people from each country. I think that asian people have been very interesting to me as well. I wanted to know if there was any way I could visit any asian countries on the registry? I have a case of possession of CP and not sure if I would ever get off the registry. I know now Thailand will not accept, what about malaysia, or Indonesia, or China, or Taiwan . THANK YOU in advance
@Eagle
If you fly out of the United States, about the only place in Asia that you have a chance of getting into right now is Hong Kong, but even that could change at any time.
A few registrants have been successful entering some Southeast Asian countries by flying there from another foreign country. But keep in mind that since you are subject to IML you would have to give 21 day notice to your registering agency of any countries you intend to try and visit, otherwise you could be in jeopardy from US marshals upon your return to the US. Remember that Satan Watch will send notice to whatever country you fly to first from the US. Better make sure that is a country that will allow you in.
(By the way, no one is more upset about Thailand than me. I was turned away when I flew there with my wife, wanting to meet her family for the first time.)
“Satan Watch”
That’s the perfect name. I think people should ALWAYS refer to them as that. In some cases, it might have to be explained who/what it is and perhaps in such an explanation a person might say something only like “they refer to themselves as ‘Angel Watch'”.
I think it is quite beneficial to always label these entities as the P.O.S. evil that they are. Right? We see what labeling does. So let’s use it on them all the time.
I think if the general public sees these agencies, government, legislators, whatever referred to over and over and over again as criminals, by millions of people, then that will stick. The general public needs to learn that only criminal regimes have Registries and their additional, promoted “laws”. Criminal legislators create them. Law enforcement criminals enforce it. Immoral un-Americans support it all.
Only criminal regimes:
1. Have “$EX Offender” Registries.
2. Run a “$EX Offender” Witch Hunt.
3. Run “$EX Offender” Apartheid.
4. Attempt to keep “$EX Offenders” off of social media (which they do ONLY to try to control dissent).
Have you found out anything yet? I want to go to Macau and Mslaysia. I am in Hong Kong, now, and there is NO PROBLEM entering here.
@Shaggy:
Though things have changed since I was there*, I don’t recall any passport controls between HK and Macau. We took the TurboJet ferry, maybe that makes a difference.
*HK was still UK ruled, and Macau was still Portuguese.
The National Park is awesome. On the drive up from Dubrovnik stop at Makarska. Awesome town without the congestion of Split or Dubrovnik. Lots of day trips you can take to the islands. Stari Grad on Hvar was amazing.
Isn’t it lovely? I love that drive. I drove the entire coast soon after the Bosnian War. Did you visit the island of Korcula?
Our boat stops in Korcula looking forward to it. The old architecture and paved streets never gets old to look at it truly feels like a movie set.
@steve
I appreciate the info. I’ll add it to our trip folder. Happy you’ve been able to get to all these places! We’re looking forward to it.
I am in San Diego, Ca and Just did my yearly with the Sheriff dept. and they wanted me to sign a paper explaining the IML. I told them I would not sign it, they ask me why not and I used the (and) statement in the law that says you need to meet both requirements. They said ok and just wrote refuse to sign. They said it was only if I wanted to go vacation out of the country, I ask them what if I was leaving the country for good, they told me I would just have to sign out of the California registry and the IML would not apply. Comments???
Don’t take legal advise from cops. It’s not the local police that you need to worry about, it’s the feds that could arrest you upon return. Even if you planned on never returning, there’s always a chance you might someday have to return.
It makes sense. As soon as you tell California that you are leaving them, they are no longer your jurisdiction.
Yes! UNLESS Wisconsin has its talons in you. They follow you even into deep space if your conviction was there.
NY is the same way
Florida as well. They are abusing the federal system stating that there are 70,000 sex offenders on the Florida registry when less than 1/2 of them – YES – less than 35,000 do not even live in the state!
Yet – politicians such as that snake Senator Lauren Book lie and claim that the registry is needed to alert the good people of Florida of sex offenders living next to them…well kind of blows that LIE out of the water when it is a FACT that half of those listed for life are not in the state and never will be again!
FLORIDA CONTINUES TO ABUSE AND THOSE WHO HAVE PAID THEIR DEBT TO SOCIETY FOR CASH!
Just got off the phone with the Attorney Generals office again and I asked a few questions.
1) if I’m moving from the state I register in to another country, do I have to report 21 days in advance. Answer was that it would be nice but notifying the current jurisdiction would suffice. You would have to re register upon returning if you ever do so.
2) if I move to a new state and they don’t require me to register but my previous state did, do I have to notify the new state of residence of international travel. Answer was No. You only need to report if you are currently registering in a jurisdiction.
3) Once I am abroad, do I have to notify the US when going to a different country? Answer was No. Once outside the US and successfully in another country, you don’t have to notify US of any other travel. Just reregister upon returning, if your US jurisdiction requires you to.
Which AG? Your state’s? Which state? Or USAG?? Hard to believe they gave advice over the phone…
Sorry it was the US Marshall’s office on the FAQ page for IML
Question #4- if you’re on Fla. perpetual list does that change any of the above answers.
@JM from wi:
“Question #4- if you’re on Fla. perpetual list does that change any of the above answers.”
—–
Based on the information in Q&A #2, no. Though you may remain on FL’s registry, you are not registering with that jurisdiction. However, WI & NY (and others?) have a different issue, as active registration is still required even after leaving those jurisdictions.
I’ve got a lot of traveling to do soon…. I set my appointment to renew my passport.
Scared of what may come from it. Will find out about 2 weeks after I drop off the application. Will update here on the results
Ugh.. just got back from Europe in may and now received the letter to surrender the passport for the “marked” passport. Anyone knows when I go to get new passport, do I need to tell them on the application that I need a passport with the mark or it’s automatic thing?
Secondly, can marked passport still go to Europe okay?
So far so good with Europe. When I applied I filled out the “lost or stolen” form and in the narrative boxes clearly wrote “not lost or stolen. My passport was revoked via certified letter sent from Dept xyz (referenced on the letter)”. The USPS employee said, “oh, I’ve never heard of that”, and I said, “yeah, neither have I. It’s ridiculous.” And that was it. No further details. Pay for expediting.
Then spend a little more money ($85 for 5 years) and get PreCheck. You can’t get Global Entry EVER but PreCheck you likely can. Took about 10 days instead of 2-3 days to get approved.
@E, so TSA Precheck is possible to apply for? I was debating because I am not sure to get Global entry or TSA Precheck though the GE includes TSA recheck as well. Could you clarify if it’s okay to get TSA precheck but not GE?
So what form should I do to get the marked passport? You said lost and stolen form but Mike said the new passport form. I am so confused.
@Lee
Yes, you can apply for TSA Precheck. I applied, was approved, and issued a Known Traveler Number.
Just go to the State Dept passport website and follow the instructions to apply. It’s very simple. As soon as you mark that you do not any longer have your previous passport it will force you to also complete the lost/stolen form.
Same as NPS, I was approved for PreCheck. But as posted elsewhere on this site, any felony will disallow you for GE. Not so for PreCheck. They are different programs. GE involves Customs and Border Protection… whole different ballgame and harder yo get than PreCheck.
Your passport was stolen by a criminal regime. Don’t ever support those scumbags. Don’t ever care about anyone who does.
@lee
Read this thread for more info you seek on a new marked passport: https://all4consolaws.org/2016/10/survey-international-travel-after-iml/comment-page-7/#comment-229765
@lee
Welcome to the exclusive club.
Don’t try to use your revoked passport to apply for the new one – it has been reported that it will be rejected. You must go in person with your birth certificate, etc.
You should automatically get the marked passport, though several that should have received marked ones got unmarked ones instead. So far, we have not heard from someone getting an unmarked one, traveling, and having the new one revoked again. Hope is that if that did happen, it would not be while you are out of country, but as everyone knows, almost anything can happen to us.
As @E says, there is no place on the application to indicate revoked, only lost or stolen. I just left both blank, and when the clerk asked which it was, I told her it was revoked. She said ‘Oh, so are you allowed a new one?’ and I said ‘Yeah, they told me to go ahead and apply for a new one.’
Also, as @E said, you should pay for expediting – otherwise ours seem to take a lot longer than normal.
During my 8 day European trip in April, no one looked for the marked page, going or coming. We all hope it stays that way!
@Mike G, so you just applied for a new passport by executing a new application form then? On the form, no need to say anything about the revoke as E mentioned? or attached the letter with the passport application?
Use a Regular application. Not a renewal form. If you don’t have your current passport anymore you are forced to fill out the lost/stolen form. That’s where you can reference the revocation letter but I did not attach the letter. I didn’t want to help them that much or sit there with a low level USPS employee giving me the stink eye because of the letter.
Hello fellow citizens ,
I am getting older and I want to travel overseas and see some of the world , I predicted this whole International Megans list just prior to my conviction so even though my passport had a bout 5 years left on it I renewed it , now it is good until 2023 so it is not marked or flagged so I am going to try to use it . Any advise ? Since it is not marked do you think I can get away with out filling out the California Intended travel form ? My victim was a 30yo woman 261(a)(4) if that makes any difference . Any advise would be greatly appreciated
Thanks
The special passport is required for those who are currently registered AND whose offense involved a minor (under 18). Your passport should be fine.
@catch22
Since your victim was not a minor, you are not subject to IML, so as ocguy says, your passport should be fine. Also, since California is not a SORNA state, there is no reason for you to give any notice to anyone.
Do keep in mind, though, that certain countries (i.e. Canada, Mexico, UK and others) may refuse entry strictly on the basis of a criminal conviction for anything. That said, no one is sure which countries have access to the USA criminal database, so some places you may get in with no trouble, but others may stop you, or may pull you aside and question you, then let you in. Most of Europe (other than UK) should not be a problem to visit.
@catch22
You absolutely ARE subject to IML if you are still required to register (which since you are in California I assume you are). The advanced travel notification portion of IML applies to all registrants that are currently required to register in any jurisdiction. The passport identifier won’t apply to you. But regardless that California is not SORNA compliant, 21 days notice is still the federal law, and not providing it could end you up in prison. There is a California DOJ form at the top of this thread that you can take to your local registration office 21 days ahead of travel.
@Mike G
I know your intentions are good on this, but be careful offering legal advice on something you may not be 100% sure of, as it could get someone in serious trouble. I’m no lawyer either, so I’d recommend anyone that has questions/doubts about what legal requirements they might have should consult a lawyer. My understanding on this topic from reading plenty of threads on it is that whether or not states are SORNA compliant has no bearing on IML applying. It may be more difficult to provide notice in those states, but people traveling should still cover themselves.
@JrSD
Thank you for reiterating that. Regardless, make the attempt to notify, document it, keep it with you as proof, and travel knowing you did your part. By doing that, your defense is set if the traveler is challenged. No oops, no ten years in the pokey, no denying travel.
I had to do my annual registration this week. And while there, chatting with the registering agent, who informed me that she knows of several registrants who visit Mexico regularly, “they just drive across the border”. So could someone enlighten me: Are you at legal risk in the U.S. (for not giving 21 day notice), if you go into another Country with advance-noticing OUR federales??
If they’re not giving her notice, how would she know?
@David
Yes, you are at legal risk for not giving 21 day travel notification in the USA as required if you need to do so.
And why should you trust this registration agent you talked with? If she says people are ok with jumping into a pit of sulfuric acid, would you do it? Does she know the situation these people are just driving across under, e.g. 21 day travel notification given, certain registry tier level, which crossing they are crossing at without issue, etc? Without more specs, she should not be saying what she is saying.
@TS:
“If she says people are ok with jumping into a pit of sulfuric acid, would you do it?”
—–
Now, now. Be nice. I prefer to quote the late, great John Candy (who died in Mexico while filming a movie) from “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles”: ‘If they told you wolverines would make good house pets, would you believe them?’
@JuniorSD – you should listen to your own advice.
@catch22 – you clearly state your victim was 30 years old. IML does not apply to you. It only applies to “child sex offenders.” You can just read the law.
@NeedtoKnow
Sorry dude you are completely wrong. IML applies to anyone who is required to register, for any offense, in any jurisdiction. The passport identifier is the portion of the law that only applies to what IML calls “covered sex offenders” which is those who are required to register AND have an offense involving minors. But if you insist on believing otherwise, go ahead and travel at will without giving advanced notice and cross your fingers that the US Marshalls don’t scoop you up at some point.
IML has some provisions which apply to jurisdictions (i.e. States, Tribes, and Territories), and some which apply to citizens (i.e. RCs). States, and ONLY States (not Tribes, not Territories) have Tenth Amendment rights which allow them to ignore some Federal laws. Citizens, however, have no such constitutional right. With that in mind, I’m confused how anyone thinks that because their particular State is non-SORNA they now have a right to ignore his/her responsibilities according to IML.
I would appreciate it if someone who believes a resident of a non-SORNA State is exempt from IML reporting requirements would explain the source of and authority for that position.
I live in San Diego,CA and I have to do the 21 notice. They had a sign out front that says to do that. It was only there for a while but, regardless, I had to do a notification when I traveled in January of this year.
@Everyone
I apologize for giving out information based on what I was told by my brother in the State Department at the time IML was signed into law.
Until I have time to go back and read and study the law, and find out who is right and who is wrong, please DISREGARD any information I have posted regarding giving 21 day notice before traveling.
Thank you.
(Now back into my hidey hole…)
@Mike G:
You’ve unwittingly proven something that gets said on here a lot: don’t trust the “experts” (no maligning of your kin meant) in Government on any of this. They have zero reason to be well-educated on the ins and outs, and they have zero risk for being wrong. We are the exact opposite. Like it or not, (collective) we are the subject matter experts on this stuff. That doesn’t mean we’re lawyers or anything; it means we’ve tested the defenses of the enemy enough times to know the outcomes and behaviors.
@AJ
Have always felt your comments were well thought out and accurate, so I will cede to the higher authority. I appreciate your taking the time to keep an eye on us and straighten us out when we get off course. Great that we have your due diligence to count on. 🙂
P.S. My brother has since retired from the State Department, so I’m letting him off the hook.
@Mike G:
Thank you, sir. I don’t know that I always succeed doing as you state, but I strive for it. We’re all here to support and help one another, is my take. I do what I can and try to have verifiable info for what I state.
Winding down the cruise portion of the trip. Just left Korcula and headed for the island of Mjet then on Friday we will be in Dubrovnik. I did forget to mention when you board the boat the Captain collects all the passports. So if you have the sor stamp get the passport cover so it would be hard to expose if someone feels like checking out in depth everyone’s passport. It’s nice the boats have wifi🇭🇷
@steve
Happy your trip is going well. Did your boat have food on it like a cruise ship, or did you have to fend for yourself?
Let us know if there is anything in Dubrovnik that we just can’t miss. Thanks.
I wonder why the captain takes all the passports? That would sure make it easier for a terrorist group to go onboard and easily find all the passports in one place to help the terrorists find any particular citizens they want to hurt. Like when the Achille Lauro was taken over by the Palestine Liberation Front and they killed the Jewish-American man Leon Klinghoffer. I’d prefer to have my passport in my possession so I could hide or destroy it in that situation. There are many terrorist groups that don’t like Americans or Jews.
We are on a 30 person boat seriously doubt that scenario would ever happen. He has to check in at every port and we have visited 7 so much easier if he holds on to them rather than me having to keep digging them out.
@Lake county…after talking to our captain the truth comes out, in a heavy Croatian accent, “we have to make sure you pay bar bill, then you get passport back” Big laugh …
Mike here is a little tidbit. When driving up from Dubrovnik there is a little slice of Bosnia you go through and you’ll have to present your passport. Then in about 2 miles or so you’ll have to present it again reentering Croatia. Stay in the far left lane that is for all passports. Other lane is for EU and a couple others. If you’re on a bus they make everyone exit to present it. Kinda whack but no big deal. Sailed right thru. It’s going to be very hot when you are here. Do the walls early morning or late at night. It’s packed there and hot. Make sure you find some Cevapcci to eat. It’s excellent. Do the Buzza bar. Side of a cliff and really awesome view. Heading to wife’s families village in Hercegovina tomorrow than we fly back on the 4th. Will report back reentering experience then. Everyone speaks pretty good English here FYI. My wife is fluent so that was a bonus.
Will be making my way back today. I’ve had no issues with anyone scanning my passports. No extra time looking at and no funny looks until this morning scanning my passport in Munich. She saw something on the screen and looked at all my stamps. Stamped me and said have a good day sir. I’ve been thru 4 countries and probably have 12 stamps. My wife’s flight was cancelled and they offered to reschedule for July 19th!!!!WTH. I had to spend 3k to get them on another airline and that one doesn’t even leave until the 5th. Never fly with Level. They are cheap but pay the extra for a real airline.
@steve
For some reason, some of my previous comments to you are not showing up. I did respond to most of your posts – thanks for the info.
You may recall when I flew into Munich, they saw something on the screen also, but after the agent conversed with another agent, he stamped my passport and said have a good day.
Sorry to hear about your airline woes. I’ve never heard of Level, but I’ll remember to avoid them! We are on Turkish Air for our upcoming trip.
Hope you get through Secondary with a minimum of fuss!
Mike, you’re going thru Istanbul? Are you transferring there or going thru passport control and staying in Turkey? I’m anxious to hear how that transfer goes.
@E
On our way to Athens, we are just transiting through Istanbul. We have a fairly short connection time, so I hope we don’t have to deal with passport control, customs, or anything else.
On our way back, we have a fairly long layover in Istanbul. If things go smoothly on the trip in, we might get brave and try for an online visa so we can get on one of Turkish Air’s free excursions into the city from the airport.
I’ll be sure to let you know how everything goes.
Excellent, thanks!
Ok so after dealing with my wife’s flight
Mine got cancelled also. Lufthansa was great. Booked me a new hotel and new flight after waiting in a 2hr line. New flight was Munich to Frankfurt / Frankfurt to Seattle/Seattle LAX. No problems with my passport in Any country I visited. I got a little nervous about Seattle customs. During the flight a fight attendant approached me and told me someone would be meeting me at the exit because I have a tight connection. So my mind starts going wondering who it will be. Turns out it was a Lufthansa rep who gave me an express pass thru customs. They bring me all the way to the front and got a really cool inspector who pulled up my passport. We chatted and he excused himself and they told me someone would be downstairs at baggage to meet with me. Gave my passport to the officer who told me to get my bag and meet her at the exit. I knew secondary was coming.
Got interviewed. Where I visited etc…they had my bags up there to check but said never mind and hope you make it to your connection. As I walked out with the lady CBP she said “you know why we pulled you out right” I said yes and thank you for being very professional. I had to deal with 3 different CBP agents they all were very nice and polite. A+ for Seattle.
Good news. Appreciate the reports!
@steve
Looks like all’s well that ends well! Sorry about all of your airplane woes, but appears that you were treated well. We were happy with Lufthansa. Also good that kids and kids friends weren’t with you when dealing with CBP in Seattle, though it appears CBP treated you fairly well!
I am curious whether you noticed any of the CBP people looking for the passport mark, or whether anyone asked if you had given your 21 day notice.
Wish we could get together and chat about Croatia, but I guess that would be tough with our current statuses. I have taken note of all your suggested things to see, and if possible, we will check them out.
Thanks again for all your timely updates!
Nobody looked for the mark nor did anyone ask about 21 day notice. I am only guessing but at the initial CBP encounter when he first scanned my passport it only comes up as a flag and doesn’t tell the officer what the crime is. I say this because he didn’t treat me any different after he scanned it. Also nobody asked about my conviction.
@steve
I think that is pretty much all good news. In all my dealings with CBP, I can only think of a couple of times anyone has asked any detail about what I did. I’m fine with sharing that since it was quite minor compared to what is probably in their mind. I think it must show on their screen that the conviction involved a minor, because I have been asked several times if I was married, and I’d say yes, for over 40 years, and they’d look shocked and say “…and she stayed with you after that?”
Let’s hope that the evil mark and the 21 day notice continue to ignored for some time to come 🙂
It might be easier to just sneak across the southern border next time.
Looks like this conference is in Texas. A bit pricing, but if anyone can attend, would be great to geet feedback on this one session. https://www.eventscribe.com/2019/CACC/fsPopup.asp?efp=RVJJU1FaRlU1OTMz&PresentationID=510744&rnd=0.6325008&mode=presinfo
Here’s the conference info: http://www.cacconference.org/
@IML
It would be interesting to hear if the US Marshall’s service is being encouraged to more strongly enforce IML, by whatever method.
From reading their descriptions, you would think they think that finding 100% of the non-compliant RCs out there would eliminate all child sex crimes. By the same token, you would think they think that stopping RCs from traveling would eliminate all international child sex crimes.
It would be much more meaningful if they could produce statistics showing how many child sex crimes are committed by non-compliant RCs, and statistics of how many sex crimes in other countries are committed by visiting RCs.
Of course, those numbers would be so low, there is no way they could justify the millions if not billions of dollars they spend to harass us and keep the public in abject fear of us.
Does anyone know if it makes a difference traveling to a country like Jamaica and Costa Rica if you have an identifier or not? These are countries that have no laws against admitting sex offenders, but some sex offenders have reported being sent home from them anyway since IML. I’ve been to Jamaica three times with no issue, but that was all before 2016. Even though my offense is 1 count of cp, when I renewed my passport last month, there was no identifier on it. I’m not sure if that was lucky oversight, or because my federal charge specified I had no victims.
In any case, I’m wondering if countries like the two I listed above make any distinction between those with passports with the special identifier and those that don’t? Does anyone have any experience of getting in since 2016, or suggest ways I could find out?
Thanks for your time.
“$EX offenders” should be in prison. If a country knows that a “$EX offender” is trying to enter their country, why would they not arrest them and hold them for extradition?
@BlueSkyeSteve
So far, no RC has reported being denied entry to a country due to a marked passport. Actually, no one has reported that anyone outside the US has even looked at the mark in a marked passport.
Mike G, Probably because the notifications that exist entirely separately from the passport marking already fulfill the goal of refusing entry to registrants. The passport marking is just a gratuitous and symbolic degradation that probably has more to do with further degrading his interaction with banks, hotels, travel agents, etc. In other words, icing on the cake.
The “mark of the devil” may be gratuitous, but my passport bearing that mark did cost me $135 (while my revoked passport had still been good for 7 more years.)
F.U.U.S.!
David, I didn’t mean gratuitous as in “free” but gratuitous as in needlessly cruel, vindictive and, in this case, expensive. “Piling-on” in other words.
Hi, so just to give me an average time. How long does it take to get the passport after apply for a passport and have the mark with the expedite method?
Took about two weeks, I think. I payed for expediting.
I posted this last week in the June General Comments (since the July one hadn’t been created yet), so I don’t think anyone saw this.
Apparently you can renew your passport in 24 hours; that is, if you’re willing to pay extra.
https://m.sfgate.com/lifestyle/article/You-can-now-renew-your-passport-in-as-little-as-14086155.php
Oh my god, I just saw that Tahiti does not turn away RSO visiting? Is that true? So I can visit Bora Bora with my partner then? That’s always been the place we want to go for anniversary. I appreciate that travel matrix; however, it does not say what happened or how it happened even with the success ones, and how long ago was it, etc. We really need those kind of data points to educate ourselves better for traveling.
http://registranttag.org/resources/travel-matrix/
Dear Lee:
I think this is so because Tahiti is technically part of France still…as Bonaire is part of the Netherlands.
Both destinations look to be good….but this is no promise from me; we never really know and often travel is a leap of faith.
But it is a jump we need to do from time to time.
Best Wishes, and Good Luck, James I
PS Also, if you’re looking for a first time passport, ask and pay a little for for expedited service.
Let us know how it goes! Sounds like a dream vaca.
Hellooooo, Rosa Parks!
https://www.wcjb.com/content/news/Levy-County-deputies-arrest-sex-offender-trying-to-leave-the-country-512855611.html
Offense date: 1993
Yes! Does look like a Rosa Parks to me! Janice?
Except that, instead of a “bus seat,” it’s a seat on an airplane. Now, is this why they’re always giving me a seat on the back of the plane? Hmm…
Kind of interesting that with or without a 21 day notification ”they” know when we leave and when we return. They can send the dire warnings through angel watch with or without notifications. Children everywhere are safe with or without notifications. Maybe the notifications separate the sheep from the wolves….Blaaaaaa
They’ve known it all along. The system is nothing if not redundant.
In this respect, the IML is just giving them a basis for criminally charging us for not properly notifying them. Everything works to their advantage and never to ours’.
Aren’t databases wonderful?
As I read it he was apprehended when he came back into the US at customs, not before he left…. that’s interesting.
@E
I don’t think they could of arrested him before he left the country because he hadn’t violated IML yet.
What I don’t get is how he was able to get into Honduras and stay for a month…
They arrested a guy I believe was from Michigan, and charged him for violating IML several years ago, before he boarded a flight out of O’Hare to Europe.
Mike G, DIK is right. It was actually at Detroit, I believe. Feds arrested him for attempting to travel without notifying…
Wow! So you can get arrested for attempted violation of IML. So I guess if you purchase an airline ticket out of the country, if you haven’t given notice, you could be arrested 20 days before the flight leaves.
Yeah, I could have sworn it was from O’Hare but it does appear to have been from Detroit:
“In the summer of 2013, a Registered Citizen prepared for months to celebrate his 25th wedding anniversary, spending over $16,000 for a European cruise to
enjoy with his wife. On August 28, 2013, the happy couple went to the Detroit Metropolitan Airport to board a plane to Europe. After checking in, the registrant
was pulled off to the side and arrested for failing to properly notify the authorities of his impending trip.” Source: “Jameson Cook (Sept. 3, 2013). Child molester in Macomb County stopped from leaving country. Macomb Daily. http://www.macombdaily.com/general-
news/20130904/child-molester-in-macomb-county-stopped-from-leaving-country, Accessed Oct. 16, 2013 “
Mike, well, the weird thing is is that he wasn’t convicted of violation of IML, if I remember correctly but of a law preceding it that made the same notification demands of registrants who lived in AWA-compliant states. IML wasn’t yet in force when he was arrested, isn’t that right? That’s something that has gotten very little attention from us and which I often lose track of, i.e. that notification has been required for quite some time if you lived in an Adam Walsh state and well before the passage of IML.
@N.D.I.K / Kennerly
Thanks for that update. I also had forgotten that many states required notification before IML. So maybe it is safe to say that there have been no reports of anyone arrested for violating IML before they actually left the country.
Also, I have not yet heard of any reports of anyone having ANY problem as a result of the marked passport. If that has affected someone’s travel, I hope they will post about it. I had no issues during my European trip in April.
@Rueben
Recently, you needed to do short notice travel to Central America for business relating to your deceased father. What did you end up doing for the travel notification and how did the travel go with it? We’d be interested to hear your experience.
Here’s a wild fantasy/speculation: What if the UK goes ahead with Brexit and leaves the EU. I have read that the UK countries except England — Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales — may not go along with that and stay in the EU as member states. Wonder if there’s any chance they might then be Schengen and allow us in. As a life-long Anglophile I know I’ll never see London again, but visiting Scotland and Norther Island and Wales would be a delight.
I’m guessing they’d follow Ireland’s example: EU member but not a Schengen signatory. Ireland wanted instead to remain connected for travel with the UK (which refused to join Schengen).
Anyone go to Portugal recently? I know it’s Schengen and should theoretically be no problem, but, of course, I’m nervous. Going on a vacation there in Sept with my wife. Flying Newark to Porto and returning Lisbon to Chicago (my home).
Me & family visited Portugal for a week late May/early June this year. They were expecting me (flyer from Angel Watch or 21 day notice from IML?). No embarrassing questions just where I was traveling to, how long I was staying and was this business or holiday travel. Took about 2 minutes, stamped my passport and no problems encountered the rest of my stay in Portugal. Also visited Spain, Italy and Greece on this trip and again no problems.
I am curious what amount of detail the 21 day requirement demands. We would like to drive and backpack through Europe. Do they require an exact itinerary with every night detailed in advance?
We obviously would be subject to a lot of variables as to how far we make it each day. Exact locations would not be known until that day.
@ don’t tread on me. I am in California.
If you are in California and you use the California Department of Justice “Advanced Travel Notification” form, it is not very detailed and nearly everything on the form specifies “anticipated” (as in, “anticipated date of travel”, “anticipated country to visit”, etc.) I prefer being as unspecific as possible, noting where I stay in Paris, for example, only by the street’s name, and “Paris, France”.
In a case of travel like yours, I would would just give your flight info going and returning and then write your other destinations are to be determined while in Europe as we will be backpacking from country to country.
Warren, so thrilled you had no problem entering Portugal. My wife are are are going next month. Flying from Newark to Porto.
Two quick questions: How did you know they were expecting you? Did you give the IML required 21-day advance notice of foreign travel? To whom?
Also, “took about 2 minutes.” Was it your impression that your treatment was longer/different than the other travelers, or seemed about the same?
Yes, I gave my reporting agency (Orange County, CA) 21-day notice for IML travel. Most people get through customs there in less than 30 seconds. When we arrived in Portugal at customs, they scanned my passport and then sent me to another customs agent who told me he was expecting me. He already had the paperwork that was sent on me and asked few basic questions on my travel plans while in Portugal which only took a couple of minutes. He was very cordial and then wished us a pleasant stay.
No other passport checks as we continued through Spain, France, Italy and Greece (Other than hotel check-in). We were even able to get Gibraltar (UK) and see the Rock. They did look at Passports and did not scan them so we got in. Cheers!
“We were even able to get Gibraltar (UK) and see the Rock.”
—–
Though it’s part of the UK as a BOT, it’s also part of the EU and presumably will continue to be even after Brexit (finally) happens.
Passport control asks EVERYONE those questions. I don’t think it was due to your registered status.
Hi everyone! I’ve seen that sex offenders are able to travel to Schengen Nations, I’m looking to travel to Spain will I get stopped and questioned etc never traveled while being a sex offender. Will I have a stamped passport? I was 18 when I got charged, the “victim” was my at the time 17 year old girlfriend who sent me pictures of herself when she was 16, so I got charged with 1 count CP. I have been reading that if the victim is under 18 then it would get a stamp now I’m not sure about CP charge sorry a lot of questions just wondering and looking to get as much info as I can
Best info is by reading all these posts. I will be in spain sept.
There are no travel restrictions at all regarding “$EX offenders”. But there are some restrictions in place for people who are listed on a $EX Offender Registry. I personally don’t know the restrictions very well so I wouldn’t want to say anything about it lest it mislead you.
Again Will, (There are no travel restrictions at all regarding “$EX offenders”.), do not forget the stipulation of being on parole/probation/supervision as I (and others) am. I have a valid passport with no marking and yet I can’t travel internationally per supervision.
Right. But I wasn’t really commenting about the traveling, LOL. Was commenting about the use of the name “$EX offender”.
Flew to Spain twice since IML was in effect. Flew into Barcelona International Airport both times and was stopped briefly both times. Just asked me basic questions about my travel plans while in Spain. No embarrassing questions. Two minutes later I’m free to enter their country. Enjoy your trip!
@Zack
A little more info from you?
You say you were charged – were you convicted?
Are you currently on Parole or Probation or other supervision?
Do you have a current passport?
Schengen countries generally allow entry to Registered Citizens. Recommend not transiting through Canada or the UK on the way there.
yeah I got convicted and was given 2 years probation but I’m done probation and I’m in the process of getting a passport now just wondering if I should tell them I’m a sex offender because I have been reading people have to send their passports back in and buy another one that’s marked don’t wanna waste money on a passport just to have to spend money again lol
Mike G and Zack:
Zack, I was just trying to get you to stop calling yourself names. The name “$EX offender” is a weapon of war. It is used to label you so that you can be denigrated, harassed, marginalized, and ostracized. It is used to make you feel as if you are less of a human than other people. As if you are special somehow and thus deserve special harassment. I personally won’t call myself names or certainly allow other people to do it.
I’ve used “Registered Citizen” a lot but I’m not sure I like it so much. I don’t feel like a real, full citizen. Not sure I want to either. Amerika sucks. I am a “Registered Person” though.
Personally, I like “Person Registered for Harassment, Restrictions, and Punishment (PRHRP)”. I think that very accurately describes the total situation and its stupidity. I would like to see all of the millions of people who are affected by this nonsense use that term all of the time, everywhere.
If that were done, what would the situation look like in a few years? You’d have the Registry supporting crazies and zealots whining “$EX offender”, “$EX offender” just like they do today but you’d have millions of people not listening or accepting that at all. The only thing they’d hear back over and over again is Person Registered for Harassment, Restrictions, and Punishment. And tens of millions of other people would notice.
$EX crimes deserve punishment. But once it becomes immoral, unfair, illogical, anti-reality, and anti-factual, it’s an ongoing act of war. And the Registry Terrorists literally have zero excuses that war is waged on $EX crimes and not other crimes. It is illegitimate.
Does anyone know definitely of someone from a non-SORNA-compliant state who was arrested by federal marshals for not complying with the IML 21-day foreign travel notice, if that person did register the travel with local police according to their procedure (3 days in advance in Illinois, for example)?
I have read rumors but no one seems to know any facts for sure on this.
Don’t know about anyone getting into trouble. But in Houston, they only just started increasing the travel notice time to 21 days. Previously, it was a day or two before travel. My officer said they had been instructed to increase it to 21 days as they don’t want to be the cause of problems for anyone on their caseload. Whether someone HAS gotten into trouble I don’t know. Nor do I know if they did whether they did something to raise suspicion.
@Maj Carl
Are you saying Houston went on their own with their own travel notification schedule that was not in accordance with the State of Texas who may not even been in line with the US government? If so, that’s the first I have ever heard of a city entity going off on their own like that to do their own thing. Maybe others here can cite another example or two where a city has done that.
I live 10 miles east of Houston. The registering authority here does not want any notice other than what is required by state law. I went on a 28 day, 7300 mile, 7 state motorcycle trip this summer. Before going I explained the trip to officer and gave them a copy of the Wolfe survey. Reply: since I was not staying in any location more than 7 days, I was not legally changing my address.
ANY notice is 100% unacceptable. Any “government” that requires me to tell them of my travels in any way that is different from anyone else is a criminal regime. They are illegitimate. They deserve contempt, disrespect, and harm. I’m doing what I can to deliver that every day.
Personally, I would notify my local Registration people 21 days in advance whether they wanted me to or not. I would send a certified letter to them. And likely their attorneys and the government officials who have authority over them as well. Three certified letters. Then wouldn’t have to worry about not following federal law.
I agree with @Will Allen here. Three certified letters regardless. They may decline them, but what are they going to do when you follow their official timeline of notification, reject it because you followed the 21 day reg? A rejection would fly like a lead balloon. I’m sure Senator Durbin would love to hear about that.
Decline them? I assume you mean do not accept delivery? I would expect that would be extremely unlikely given they wouldn’t know the contents. It could be a person confessing to murdering 10 people in retaliation for the Registries! Could be another BTK guy! Remember they caught that serial killer because of mailed communications.
I’ve sent letters before and they’ve never been declined. I don’t think a legitimate government would decline communications. But we do know what these people are about, so who knows.
And speaking about criminal regimes and their crimes, it probably wouldn’t be the worst idea to video the entire mailing procedure. Someone suggested writing the actual # on the certified letter itself. So get the certified #, write it on the letter, put letter in envelope, and then mail. Video the entire thing.
@Will Allen
Do not assume because it’s dangerous to do so.
I did not say not delivered, I said declined. What it means is they are delivered so therefore notification was provided by law. However, they could decline to accept those that are in the envelopes. Two different concepts.
As @AJ and I have said here previously, once they are delivered, notification has been provided. The person has met the intent of the Federal regulations to provide 21-day notification. Whether the entity actually decides to physically accept the documentation as provided is up to the entity. That is the problem @Illinois contact is having and needs to do it at the three days prior.
If you shove it down their throat as you suggested with a certified letter, which I’m for, the letter of the fed law has been met despite whether the entity receiving the notification will accept it because it’s before the three-day window they only accept notifications.
That is why I threw Senator Durbin’s name into the discussion for the state of Illinois. If the person is trying to meet the federal regulations and the state is not accepting it even though they’ve been certified delivery, his reaction might be one of any numerous things.
“Decline them? I assume you mean do not accept delivery?”
—–
I doubt they would do such, either. Too much risk involved in not finding out. Can you imagine the furor if it were later discovered a crime could have been avoided or solved had they accepted the mailed info? Ohhh baby!
=====
“And speaking about criminal regimes and their crimes, it probably wouldn’t be the worst idea to video the entire mailing procedure. Someone suggested writing the actual # on the certified letter itself. So get the certified #, write it on the letter, put letter in envelope, and then mail. Video the entire thing.”
—–
Twas me who suggested this process. Go to the PO and get yourself a Certified Mail form (or three, for good measure). Compose your letter, with a header in bold stating, “Mailed via Certified Mail. Certified Mail #xxxxxxxxx.” Personally I’d send an exact copy via regular mail. In that case, both letters would have headers saying, “Mailed via Certified and First Class Mail. Certified Mail #xxxxxxxxx.” (Mailing by both methods helps with the refusal issue, since the 1st Class letter will make it.) I would then go to the PO with my letter(s) and envelope(s) unsealed. I’d film myself in the PO lobby assembling and sealing them, including showing the Certified Mail info. After completing the transaction at the window (better yet, at the self-mailing machine if possible so it can be recorded non-stop), I’d video the receipt while standing in the PO lobby still. This may all sound like overkill, but when you’re dealing with slimy gov’t types, you have to nail them to the wall with irrefutable facts….and then nail them a bit more. Few are slimier than those related to RC/ML stuff.
@AJ
Now that would be rich if they disregarded a 21 day travel notice for their own shorter period and something happened which the 21 day should’ve been processed. Heads would hopefully roll on that misstep.
how does the country you are going to find out about your conviction? is it only because the 21 day notice thing or can they see it when they scan your passport? I’ve been reading some of the posts can’t really find anything about this, if it has been posted before my bad didn’t see it.
Depends on the country. 5 hand countries have access to the FBI database, but mostly the gov’t sends a green notice through interpol. Even without the 21 day notice they were sending it before you landing by scanning your passport and looking at manifests.
@Scotus save us
Um, five hand? Do you mean five eyes?
If its compelled speech on a license, why is it not compelled speech on a passport. And even if the icon isn’t, -if in the rfid data it says sex offender, would that be?
@Bo
It could be considered government compelled speech in a passport if it was in the RFID, I would think.
The big question becomes is if it is in the RFID and it’s seen by government only who have the ability to read that, is it still government compelled speech issue much like the registry used to be law enforcement only and just like the code that is now on the Alabama driver’s license which cannot be deciphered without the secret decoder ring by those who are privy to it? As @AJ noted here recently when we discussed the Alabama driver’s license case is the judge tacitly agreed with coding being sort of okay (even though in the end it truly is still government compelled speech regardless of how it’s presented).
However, you have to show on an individual case basis pain, suffering, or damage because of it. That is what these challenges in the various states on facial basis are showing for DLs/IDs.
@Bo:
“If its compelled speech on a license, why is it not compelled speech on a passport.”
—–
It may well be, but it also may be a tougher case to make and win for a few reasons. 1) As pointed out in the recent AL win, passports aren’t nearly as ubiquitous and necessary as DLs and IDs are. One can function in our society without a passport, not so (much) a DL or ID. 2) The passport is technically a document wherein the Secretary of State is requesting another country allow your entry. That has raised the question in scholarly papers (and court cases? I can’t recall) of whether one is willfully engaging in some level of diplomacy. The courts give broad latitude to the Executive regarding diplomacy.
In short, the difference probably lies in the domestic versus international uses and requirements. As for the RFID, State claims this information isn’t embedded. I tend to believe them because I doubt these RFIDs can be flashed with updates (big security risk!). Since IML only applies to those who are still on registries, State would need to keep track of whether one is still on a registry. That could change either direction simply by interstate moves. If the RFIDs aren’t flashable, State would need to reissue a passport every time one’s RC status changed. In truth, I suspect the only info in the RFID are one’s permanent characteristics (sex, birthplace, etc.) and name of record at application (thus the use of the Endorsements pages for name changes).
Anyone been to Portugal lately? My wife are I are going in September. I assume that because it’s Schengen there will be no problem, but I’d love to have that confirmed by a first-hand report.
Haven’t been in several years. Spain was no problem earlier this year. Please do report back afterwards!
I will be traveling to Croatia soon and I have not had any luck finding any information about whether sex offenders can enter the country. Does anyone have any experience with traveling to the country of Croatia? Any info would be greatly appreciated.
I was just there no problems. Look up about 20 posts on this thread for more info.
Croatia is letting us in. Several have been there within the last several months (do a Google search for all4consolaws.org AND Croatia). You’ll be fine.
Hello all. We are scheduled to start a multi-country trip in Eastern Europe in about 4 weeks.
Just a general inquiry in case I missed something:
Has anyone had a major or even a minor travel related problem as a result of the Marked Passport?
Thanks!
Here is our scheduled trip, leaving in about 4 weeks:
Turkey: Just changing planes on the way there – on the way back we have a 7 hour layover (possible visit downtown Istanbul if there are no issues?) (?)
Greece: Schengen so no expected problems
Macedonia (maybe part of Greece?)
Albania: (?)
Montenegro: (?)
Bosnia-Herzegovina: (?)
Croatia: No problems expected due to fine reports from Steve!
Slovenia: Schengen plus been here before – no problems expected
Hungary: Schengen plus been here before – no problems expected
Serbia: (?)
Bulgaria: (?)
If anyone has info on the question-marked locations, we would appreciate hearing it!
Thanks!
@Mike G:
“Macedonia (maybe part of Greece?)”
—–
You just unwittingly offended a whole bunch of Greeks and Macedonians. 😀 FYI: the country changed its name to the Republic of North Macedonia to settle a dispute with the Greeks over the name.
Greece does have a region called Macedonia (an area the Apostle Paul roamed), so the mistake/confusion is forgivable.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/13/europe/north-macedonia-name-change-intl/index.html
Wow AJ!
You are like the Super Fact Checker that keeps us all inline! (Last thing I want to do is offend a bunch of Greeks and North Macedonians before I even get there 🙁 )
Okay, I had done a quick Google search for Macedonia, and one of the results was “Macedonia, Greece” so I just kind of assumed…
Anyway, a little better research confirms we are definitely headed for North Macedonia, city of Ohrid.
Hope to hear from any RC who has successfully traveled in this area.
Bosnia not a problem spent 3 days there. You are going to pass thru it on drive from Dubrovnik to Split. They have a slice of the coast. Where are you going in Bosnia?
Thanks Steve.
Our itinerary has us going from Dubrovnik to Mostar, Bosnia Herzegovina, and then back to Northern Croatia.
@ Mike G: I hope everything goes well for you in Turkey when you “just change planes”. I had to abandon a nonrefundable ticket (read: $$$) to France because I could not get any assurance from the Irish Border Patrol that I would not be turned back when I landed there to change airplanes. I had email discussions back and forth with the head of their border patrol unit located at that airport and he said that it was ultimately up to each individual border patrol officer as to whether they turned someone back or admitted them and he could not provide me with any assurance as to what each officer would do . I decided that risking my expensive trip to French vacation was not worth the risk, so I bought another ticket that flew through a friendlier Schengen country.
(Sorry to be a wet blanket.)
Went thru Bosnia checkpoints 3 times and they didn’t bat an eye. We were going to do Mostar as we have some relatives there but stayed in Medjugorie with some other family a bit longer.
@steve
Thanks! Always good to hear positive travel news!
@David
I really appreciate your concern. Yes, there is a certain amount of risk involved flying to Istanbul. Unfortunately, Turkey does not show up on the RTag matrix, so we have no idea if anyone has successfully entered there, or if anyone has been refused entry. It is almost a sure thing that Satan Watch will send them a warning letter – luck may determine which way things go. We have already decided that my wife will continue the trip on her own if I get turned around, but it would be a great disappointment for both of us, so fingers crossed.
Our luck has been with us in the past. The UK won’t allow RCs to enter the country, but I flew into Heathrow last year, changed planes, and flew out with no issues. Taiwan won’t allow RCs to enter (according to RTag) but we flew into Taipei (twice), changed planes, and flew out with no issues. Canada (as we all know) won’t let anyone with a criminal record enter in, but we flew into Toronto, changed planes, and flew out again with no issues. Actually, in Toronto, they released us right into the airport lobby where we could have walked outside, got in a cab, and toured the town. I think someone made a bureaucratic error that trip.
So, we’re going to spin the roulette wheel again, and hope we don’t hit “00”.
Istanbul was Constantinople. 😂
I had a layover there about 2 years ago. But then again I was just changing planes and never had to go through immigration. It’s got a great view at night landing there though.
Unlike the UAE that has US immigration there. So you go through secondary before you even land in the US like it’s a local flight.
Hope the trip goes well.
@Mike G:
“I flew into Heathrow last year, changed planes, and flew out with no issues. Taiwan won’t allow RCs to enter (according to RTag) but we flew into Taipei (twice), changed planes, and flew out with no issues. Canada (as we all know) won’t let anyone with a criminal record enter in, but we flew into Toronto, changed planes, and flew out again with no issues.”
—–
I suspect that’s because you never technically crossed into any of these countries. Though you were of course on British, Taiwanese, and Canadian soil at the time, you never processed through customs and immigration. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if RCs can internationally transit through pretty much any airport without a problem. If one stays away from customs/border control and stays within the secure area of the airport, travel experiences will probably be more safe than sorry. That all said, Anger Watch certainly has its fingers in the pie and may cause a trip-up now and then. But all in all I bet it’s safe, as your own travels indicate. (The Canada instance is a bit odd, though!)
A further of how this may all work can shown by what occurred with a family member. He is one of these people who loves flying and does all sorts of tricks and maneuvers to fly here, there, and everywhere for cheap and to collect airline miles and such. (Way more work than worth, IMO.) On one particular trip, he flew to a German airport only to turn around and fly back out some hours later. When he presented his passport to the gate agent to check in for the flight out, she was confused why he was lacking immigration/emigration markings. He explained to her he had never actually entered Germany, having only arrived a couple hours earlier, waited in the terminal, and was now flying out–on the reciprocal flight no less. It confused her for a while, but once he explained what he was doing and why, she said, “oh, you’re one of those people.” Apparently it was not her first experience with a miles-hound.
In short, as long as one doesn’t have to process through customs and immigration, one is in a no-mans-land inside the international terminal and will almost assuredly escape any scrutiny or problems. No guarantees this will always happen for everyone since Anger Watch will rat out a traveler.
@NY won’t let go
Thanks for that info (but I don’t think I will put Constantinople on my 21-day travel form 🙂 ). I’ve read that if you fly Turkish Air, and you have a 7 hour or longer layover in Istanbul, they give you a free excursion into the city to see some sites, and include a free breakfast. On our outbound trip, we have a 2 hour layover, but on our return, we have a 6 hour 53 minute layover. If we have no issues the first time through, we might see if we can beg to get on one of those excursions. It would mean getting a Turkish Visa, but it looks like an immediate online process for $10 or so, and I doubt there would be any checking, but we will play that one by ear.
@AJ
I agree with your assessment. If you manage to avoid Customs and Border Patrol, there shouldn’t be a problem, unless they are waiting for you when you get off the plane (like happened to me in Thailand) because of the warning letter from Satan Watch. Also, if you arrive on a cruise ship, they can sometimes be rather lax. We walked right off the ship and spent a few hours in Victoria, Canada, and I didn’t even have my passport with me. We also left the ship and toured St. Petersburg, Russia, for two days with no issues.
@NY won’t let go
Also, I forgot to mention, Istanbul has a brand new airport – it just opened in April. I hope there is still the great view that you experienced.
A brief follow-up to my adventure of being met at Charles de Gaulle Airport by the French police and briefly questioned. In response to this “adventure”, five months ago, I submitted FOIA requests to the Department of Justice (U.S. Marshals Service) as well as to Department of Homeland Security (ICE). To date, neither of them have been able to provide me with a response to my FOIA requests despite numerous follow-ups by me. I have now contacted my congressman to get involved and push DOJ and DHS for answers to my requests. 😠
@David
Here is hoping the elected official in WDC can get them to move off their collective duffs.
Interesting I had no issues at CDG last month.
Submitted FOIA requests “for what?” Demanding to know what they sent the French police, or other??
Thanks for this follow up. I am keen to hear what happens, for sure.
@David:
Goodonya! I hope you get some answers and the bureaucrats are forced to life their veils of secrecy a little bit.
@AJ: Please see my response above. ⬆️
@E. and AJ: I receive my reply from the US Marshal Service today responding to my FOIA Request. They sent me a copy of the Angel Watch notification they sent to France. I was bemused to see that their notification to France stated “Priority: Urgent” and “IMPORTANCE: HIGH”. 🙄
They also mistated my conviction year as 2008 (when their own records indicate it was the late 90s.) I have contacted them (Marshals Service) requesting they correct the information as the least they could do is be accurate when notifying foreign government authorities about traveling U.S. citizens.
Thanks for the update. Amazing in many ways.
Still love to hear if anyone has any recent experience with Portugal. Wife and I have have a big trip there coming up next month, and all signs point to no trouble, but it’s nerve-wracking.
@Illinois Contact,
I have traveled to Italy and no problem. I do not see why traveling to Portugal will be an issue.
I’ve seen that Hong Kong allows people in but china doesn’t, now has anyone tried to walk into china from Hong Kong. I have done some research and people say when they fill out the application for visa at one of the walk bridges that they have no way of looking into your background, is this true? Also how does the country u are traveling to find out you are a sex offender other than the USA notifying them.
If you apply for a China visa outside of the US they just need your tour plans and lodging etc. they actually do it through an agency here.
They don’t have access as far as I know to US records due to the whole information war going on. The only question regarding history on the form was about committing any crimes in China and if you have ever committed a political crime.
They told me to just bring my tourist info and 125USD and they would process the visa application.
Hong Kong they don’t even bat an eye at you when you go. They don’t even stamp your passport. They just give you a little piece of paper that you need to bring back to them.
Right now all flights to Hong Kong are shut down from here due to rioting though.
I was supposed to go to China this weekend for a conference, but with the military forces they just put in that city it’s been postponed.
Right now they are gearing up for war. One to reclaim Hong Kong as part of China and another to take back Taiwan which recently purchased a couple billion in weapons from the US. Including tanks and guns….
The biggest issue when traveling to a country that you did not report on your 21 day notice to IML is that your passport might get stamped upon entry. Then on your return to America, border agents might notice the stamp that wasn’t listed on your itinerary and create severe problems for you.
@Lake County:
Very good point, sir. I imagine the only claim one could make is that it was an impromptu itinerary change after leaving the US. In the case of going to HK and then deciding to venture into the rest of China, it may hold up. Other situations may work too, but I suspect in any case it would depend on how long that impromptu detour lasted. If a small percentage of one’s travels, probably fine. Anything more will probably look to a judge as an attempt to evade federal law.
Going thru customs last month nobody asked about 21 day notice nor did they inspect any of my stamps.
The problem is that each custom official has great power and can make decisions based on a whim or because they are just having a bad day. Of course new custom officials are more likely to take all rules to an extreme just to prove themselves as good employees. You don’t have to be a registered citizen to get targeted by a customs official.
Can you help with details. Do you mean leaving the US or returning? Which airport? Had you registered with you local police jurisdiction (according to their local rules), or given 21-day notice (to whom)? Which country (countries) did you visit? These are all such essential details to us would-be travelers.
@steve
I doubt CBP is going to ask about 21 day travel notice since that comes through DOJ to USMS to enforce as noted in the briefing slides linked here recently as opposed to where CBP is part of DHS. Suppose they could but that would be a new step in the process that has not been mentioned here before.
@E. and AJ: I receive my reply from the US Marshal Service today responding to my FOIA Request. They sent me a copy of the Angel Watch notification they sent to France. I was bemused to see that their notification to France stated “Priority: Urgent” and “IMPORTANCE: HIGH”. 🙄
They also mistated my conviction year as 2008 (when their own records indicate it was the late 90s.) I have contacted them (Marshals Service) requesting they correct the information as the least they could do is be accurate when notifying foreign government authorities about traveling U.S. citizens.
BTW & FYI, it took six months to get their FOIA response.
Is it possible to post a pic of the notification but with anything that would identify you redacted? I’m curious about the rest of the language they use.
@David:
Well done, brother. What a shocker that they give it a “hair on fire” status. How stupid. How much did they charge for the FOIA? If it’s nominal, perhaps every RC who travels should FOIA them every time, just to swamp the bureaucrats and the system.
It’s interesting that it was USMS that sent to notification to the French, though not surprising. To be clear, it was NOT an Interpol Green Notice? We’ve all been so concerned about Green Notices, but this points out that the US will use embassy resources to snitch.
P.S. If you decide to post a redacted version, it can be done anonymously at https://uploadfiles.io/
@AJ, David, etc.:
Yeah, I thought the same thing about that “hair on fire” status. What a bunch idiots. I’d like to think that I couldn’t/wouldn’t work in such a lame, idiotic government job, doing this kind of stupid stuff. It would just hurt my brain every day. I guess I’d do it if I had no better options. You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.
I do think every Registered Person (RP) who travels should submit a FOIA every time. Just because. The bureaucrats won’t care about being “swamped”, you can’t “swamp” a buraucrat, LOL. Especially in the federal criminal regime. They’ll just hire more people and burn more money. That is their #1 skill. But it might drive some of them up the wall. And instead of just 10 people seeing and knowing that RPs are not accepting harassment, perhaps 1,000 people will know. And tell 1,000 more, etc.
I do think it is critical that the general public, tens of millions of people and up, understand that there is a War on Registry Terrorists and that everyone is paying. Although I have to say that the complete and colossal failure of the War on Drugs has not seemed to slow down the stupid Nanny Big Government (NBG) lovers very much. NBG is very capable of wasting piles and piles of resources and convincing dumb people just how much they “need” NBG to “protect” them and help get them through life.
@ AJ & Will Allen: $-0- is cost of FOIA Request and Response. My responses from USDOJ totaled 12 pages, including cover letters. But both
replies were transmitted to me as PDFs via email, so there was no cost of postage or correspondence.
“Hair on fire!” status. ROFL! Yes, especially absurd since my offense occurred 20+ years ago and involved a teen who was one year below the age of consent. (I mention this only to confirm that – contrary to USDOJ belief – I am really NOT Jeffrey Daumer.)
NOTE: The USMS replied immediately – less than 24 hours – to my concern that they were listing an inaccurate conviction date. ‘Said the date would be immediately corrected.
Yes, I certainly encourage all IML passport holders to submit FOIA requests ….. frequently! I’ll be submitting a new one if I encounter ANY challenges on my next international trip.
Let he who lives by the Registries, perishby the Registries!! Drown ’em in FOIA Requests!!
Going from H.K. to Shenzhen eleven years ago they seemed to know everything about me. The U.S. State Department had, just weeks earlier, held up my passport renewal for “investigation” to find out if I had “a second passport” (they never explained what they meant by that) and, apparently realizing that I did not (or so they said) and after insisting that I declare that I did not, finally issued me the passport, which I had paid much more for to expedite, a full month after the application. So, when I get to the passport control on the HK/China border several weeks later, they pull me aside and have me wait for an hour and then come back and grill the shit out of me. They asked me why I had “a second passport.” I explained that I had never had “two passports” from the U.S. or anywhere else. Now, how weird is that? Obviously, China knew about the U.S. holding up my passport and the allegation that I had another passport. It was very curious, indeed. I believe that China knows a LOT about us when we enter China whether or not it is given freely by the U.S. You can be sure that there is very sophisticated and extensive information gathering going on to which China and any number of other countries (but especially, China) has access to.
That’s crazy…. since I left the US I haven’t had any issues traveling except SIngapore briefly where they wanted me to prove it was my passport because I didn’t look like myself anymore I guess. 😅
My wife and I visited China for 3 weeks a couple of years ago. At the time, my brother was the number 2 US official in China (the US ambassador being #1). He wrote invitation letters for us to submit with our visa applications. We were both issued visas with no problem, and we visited with no problems, but interestingly, my wife’s visa was good for 1 year; mine was only good for 30 days. Therefore, I assume they have some type of access to US records.
The length of the visa and how many times you can come is determined by the person issuing it. Whether you apply for a 10 year or a single entry it’s the same price from what I was told here.
Me and my wife are headed to Spain in late September. We were in Hungary, Czech Republic, and Romania last year and since we live in Texas (a non-SORNA compliant state) I tried to contact the deputy in the county I report in, and having never received a call back, I just mailed him a certified letter about 30 days before I flew out. He spoke to me about it in my annual registration, and suggested (and it was just a suggestion, because he has no authority in the federal scheme) that I fill out some sort of form on federal site telling them where I was going and when. I told him that I would look into it. I tried looking for the link, but could not find it. I really don’t think there is any legal obligation to fill out some sort of online deal with federal law enforcement for a person leaving from a non-SORNA state. So I was just going to do what I did last time. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?
All you are required to do is report it to your local reporting agency. It’s what I did and it was fine.
@Steveo:
“He…suggested…that I fill out some sort of form on federal site telling them where I was going and when.”
—–
Maybe you should show him on the Feds’ site where it says they don’t and won’t take info directly from RCs, and that it must go through the jurisdiction.
Personally I’d stick with what you did. It’s legal, it fits the requirements of SORNA, and it works.
@steveo
That is why they are a deputy and not the Sheriff, who is elected and would be possibly challenged on the validity of the info they are giving to others during a campaign. In fact, you ought to ask the Sheriff if they are ok with false info being given out from their office. Certified letter is a great move by the way. No way but to accept it.
I have a copy of a SMART IML Dispatch February 2016, which states:
“The SMART Office is not authorized to collect or receive notifications of international travel from anyone, including individual offenders, attorneys, or registration officials. If an offender wishes to make a notification of international travel pursuant to IML’s statutory requirements, that offender must report it to his or her registration agency.”
Link. https://www.smart.gov/pdfs/IML-Dispatch-2016.pdf
Who are these scumbags calling “offender”? The only offenders are the NOT-SMART scumbags and the criminal regimes. Today, Sunday, I will continue to retaliate.
Thank you @Matthew LL for reiterating that message by using the Dispatch source. We’ve been saying that here for as long as it’s been discussed when some don’t believe it even as ACSOL posts it as header to be read.
The Fed’s are fed by the states whether it be the travel notification or the registry. It’s that simple.
Anyone travel to Europe this summer and have a good/bad experience with customs? Love to hear the details. Going to Portugal with my wife soon.
We had no trouble in Europe in April. One agent in Munich scrutinized his computer’s display of my record a lot longer than my wife’s, and then asked another agent a question, but then stamped and handed back my passport and said have a good trip. As you probably know, once you get inside Europe (other than UK) you generally won’t see anymore customs or border patrol until you leave Europe. Unlikely you will have any trouble in Portugal, but let us know if you do. We’re scheduled to go there in April.
Flew from Newark to Porto Portugal last night and breezed through customs this morning with my wife. Just asked 2 questions — how long are you staying and what’s the purpose of your trip. Stamped our passports and we were off enjoying our vacation in this beautiful country. Highly recommend a trip herre. They seem like they are very welcoming.
We’re going to spend our entire time in Portugal but now any flight to anywhere in Europe would be a domestic flight with no passports or customs.
“We’re going to spend our entire time in Portugal but now any flight to anywhere in Europe would be a domestic flight with no passports or customs.”
That’s not necesssarily true. From Paris to Czech Republic stamped at both airports. Czech to Croatia stamped. Croatia to Paris stamped. Paris to Munich stamped.
@IL Contact
How did you do your travel notification, e.g. 21 days, 3 days, both, certified letter, etc?
I would recommend people do their own research and whether you need to go through immigration while traveling through Europe as there are incorrect statements here. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schengen_Area
As someone who travels extensively and in Europe, I have never had to go through immigration once I’ve enter a Schengen country. Period. That’s not how it works. So when you enter Portugal you can go to any other Schengen country without needing a “stamp” at the airports. FYI – Croatia is not a part of Schengen, though its an EU member.
I have only loosely followed this thread because I really had no desire to travel internationally. I work in the nonprofit sector and about a month ago, the president of the organization worked out some kind of deal with a travel agency to take the entire board down to Cabo San Lucas for a mid-year retreat. My boss doesn’t know details, but she knows I royally screwed up with the law in my youth and it also reared its ugly head this past year when I was denied a clearance to take the organization on a tour of one of California counties’ emergency operations centers. And fortunately, nobody within the organization asked questions beyond the fact that I had some trouble with the law in the past and they’re not comfortable giving me access. But back to the Cabo thing… this was a potential problem I did NOT want to see play out. I talked with my boss without getting into specifics and said I can’t go to Mexico because of my past. She was completely understanding and went to bat for me to figure out how we could save face. So, it had never come up about employees traveling internationally and a policy decision was made on the spot that employees are not permitted to travel out of country, which was conveyed to the client nonprofit organization. The client respected and accepted our “policy.”
That said, I probably COULD have averted an awkward scene the way the travel plans were laid out, but I had no desire to test the waters. The plan was that all those taking the trip would need to make sure their passports were up to date. We were then to travel by shuttle across the border to the Tijuana Airport and take a flight from Tijuana to Los Cabos. As guests of the country’s travel and tourism bureau, it probably would have been uneventful. But I live a law abiding life and have no desire to take chances that would jeopardize the life I’ve built for myself over the past 30 years post-conviction.
But I did some research and would like to offer some advice if ANY of you find yourself in a similar situation. Check your employee/employment agreement if it exists. If your job position does not state that international travel is included, your employer cannot force you to, and you can simply state you do not feel comfortable or safe traveling outside of the United States. Beyond that, I would hope that you have an open dialogue with your employer that you have a “checkered” past and that a very, very rare occasion might pop up that affects your ability to carry out an unusual job expectation. I do understand how blessed I am to have found an employer and her business partner who understand sometimes we make monumental mistakes but they do not define who we are as individuals, and if you are not working for someone like this, keep your resume fresh and polished until you do.
I’ve dodged major bullets for 29 years now, some close enough that I could figuratively hear whizzing by my head. For those of you who have put your mistakes in the past, I wish the same for you.
And in closing, I will only say it is regrettable that I could not join my clients in Cabo San Lucas. Perhaps things will change in the future, but for now, they are what they are.
And one final bit of advice. If you DO have international travel planned, I would suggest investing in travel insurance. I don’t know if it would be covered, but if you find your entire vacation trip ruined because some country’s interior ministry decides they don’t want to allow you entry, you are not staring at a gaping hole in your bank account for nothing.
I can relate to those awkward situations.
It sounds like you did not know you could not go to Cabo, only that you wanted to spare yourself the possible embarrassment of being turned away in front of colleagues.
I can tell you that a 290 friend of mine has recently made two trips into Mexico without issue. On the return he’s briefly pulled into secondary and that’s that.
When I renewed my passport earlier this year and it came back without the IML endorsement, I contacted my Congressional Representative for help. Their staff member asked their State Department liaison for assistance, and they were told I could ask to have my passport revoked and apply for a new one. The Congressional staff member communicated my revocation request to the liaison, and upon notification that my passport had been revoked (I had to ask the staff person to find this out for me) I reapplied ay my local post office. The passport clerk was polite and had not heard of the IML endorsements. With expedited handling, I received my endorsed passport within 10 days. My old one was returned to me a few days later with a form letter explaining the statutory basis of the endorsement.
My Representative has a staff member who was courteous and consistently responsive to my emails. They get my vote (again)!
@Just another constituent
Did you pay fees both times even though it was possibly their error? Did you renew after a revoke letter arrived or only after expiration? More details please
1. Yes, I paid fees both times; expedited handling the second time.
2. The first “renewal” application was prior to expiration or revocation, but after conviction.
3. The successful application was not a renewal, but for a new passport after the previous renewal was revoked upon my request through my Congressional representative for an Angel Watch review.
4. I did not get a letter until after the endorsed passport was sent to me. I was notified of the revocation through my helpful Congressional staff person.
Sounds like big government is really working out for you.
If your congress people were actually helpful, they’d get the Registries destroyed. They could actually shrink big government for once and even eliminate Satan Watch.
@Just another constituent
Thank you.
This was a preemptive move then to avoid possible future issues; a corrective move then by you; or both?
I like what you did here and want folks to understand what they can do if they fall under the stamp portion of the law. Your’s is a good example in making your travel life easier for those in that legal area (even though it’s an area that shouldn’t exist).
Has anyone tried walking into Mexico? Wonder if it’s the same as the airports?
Hello everyone, BD here, i have a situation i’ve not seen mentioned here or eles where before. Over 30 years ago, i was falsely accused of 2 counts of sexual assault against a girl 4 months shy of 18…After a full year of going back and forth to court, with a public defender who went to work for the prosecutor after my case, i was very strongly advised to plead no contest, because the judge was getting ready to crucify me if i did not…i was sentenced, went home for 30 days then reported to the jail..i spent 5 months in jail, only locked up at night as i worked for the jail in their office. During this entire drama, i maintained my innocence, i was never handcuffed or treated like ****. My drama was in Pennsylvania, my residence is New Jersey..I served the 5 months in PA, then NJ for once a month probation for 4 years…I am tier one with less than 30 points..
I have been with a Philippine Woman for 17 years, we have a 14 year old son and a modest house in Cebu..Until June of 2014, i visited her twice a year, as i kept my job here..Never any problem.. In June ’14, i was put back on the plane, because now there is a blacklisting order against me….Only able to see her and my son on cam for 5 years already.. I have already applied for and was denied ” Lifting of the Blacklisting Order” thru Philippine DOJ and Immigration..
i am required to register once a year with the local police..They are the ones who said its a waste of their time and said it’s over 15 years, i should apply to be released from having to report…
But i would still be subject to Megans’ Law and IML…
I will be meeting with a law firm who specializes in SO dramas…Our aim is to have me completely terminated from Magans’ Law…I can afford the fee for this service….BUT, if i had more income, they would be able to completely review my case, find all the BS things that was done to me, and more than likely, have it expunged…
One small example is the girl was immediatly examined by a doctor and a psychiatrist (?)
or pschologist (?). Both exams came back negaitive, no physical or mental stress or drama…Nothing…This report never was shown to me, and never came up in court…It was mailed to me 2 months after i served my 5 months…5 or 6 things like this…Plus it seemed obvious, my public defender was in cahoots with the prosecuter…
It was stated twice to me, that The State does not have to prove me guilty, i have to prove i am innocent…
ANYWAY, so sorry to ramble, i have Never posted on any site about this, but reading your site, i feel there is a higher intellect here than eleswhere..
My Question is…..If i am terminated from Megans Law, will it allow or prod The Philippines to allow me to return ? Any Thoughts are appreciated…Thank You All…BD
From what I understand from living outside of the country once you leave, the US doesn’t send notices because you’re outside of their jurisdiction anyway.
I haven’t gone to the Philippines or intend to but from what I’ve heard once you are of the ML you should be able to get to see your family again.
I haven’t had any issues getting into any of the countries that deny entry as of yet *knock on wood* even though I am still stuck in the NY system due to their fucked up over reaching power.
My information on the NSOR is just a name and no information or picture.
Since you are able to get off the registry I would. Then come back with a civil suit for all the years of BS. Once you leave the country you aren’t subject to ML anyway though. So long as you tell them where you are moving first.
Like pick a midway country first in Europe to Live/ work for a few months or something then go to your family.
NY won’t let go
His problem is that the Philippines has already received a green notice and denied entry. That information is not going to be deleted from their computers on future attempts to get in. The U.S. doesn’t need to send a green notice for him to be denied entry again. Once you get denied entry from any country, it becomes much harder to ever enter that country again.
NY Won’t Let Go,
I have lived overseas for 15 years (I won’t say which country) and signed in and out the last time in 2004-2005. I go home and don’t check in with the state police. So far I’ve been lucky with going to Asian countries and visit the Philippines often. But I hold my breath every time I arrive until I get through immigration. My passport is due to be renewed in early 2021 and I’m dreading getting the scarlet letter in my passport. I don’t honestly know what will happen when and if the country I live in finds out about my offense.
So far no problem with the 21 day advanced notice.
Im scheduled to renew my passport in the next couple weeks.
I know they sent the notice when I came here and my current listed address on the NY registry is my current country, but since my wife is from here and my crime so old they didn’t bat an eye.
I’ve been worried that the embassy would send me a letter or something but they told me my passport hadn’t been revoked.
I haven’t been back to the US and have no plans to. My family who still live there would rather visit me here due to the currency exchange and quality of life. I’ve even convinced some to move here.
Not sure if anyone has been following this fellow but he is filing suit in international courts to make the registries a human rights violation, he moved to Germany and works there for a large company and is working on an international level now. https://youtu.be/emILaG-YYQU
You mention no problem so far with the 21 day notice. Did you mean no problem with giving the 21 day notice, or no problem not giving the 21 day notice? Thanks!
The problem with IML for us is that it’s not the U.S. that’s stops us from travel, it’s the Country that received the green notice that has banned you. Once they are notified of your status, they may never remove that information from their computer no matter what your status is in the U.S. You are forever subject to their immigration laws and restrictions. The only person that can really help you is an immigration attorney from the Philippines that has had success getting other RC’s to enter the country. Their is always a chance that a really good attorney can get rules to bend your way. You should find an immigration attorney now, instead of later, because the laws in the Philippines could actually get worse for you later if you wait until you’re fully off the U.S registry.
@BD
One wife in the philippines hired a good Filipino attorney and after one or more trips to Manila was able to overturn her husbands blacklist. The account may still be somewhere in the thread on Philippines on this site. I took a quick look but couldn’t find the thread.
It sounds like you should be a grear candidate for removal, imho.
Sawasdee,
This message is to those that know me and helped me through my time on the registry.
Been back home here in Ubon for almost a month and things are going well. No problems and family is good.
I still have some anxieties towards certain feelings, but hoping that will pass.
To those travelling or planning to move abroad, it’s so comforting to realize that U.S. and its puppets( Britain, Ireland, Australia) are the exemption and not the norm. The rest of the world looks at us as people, not sub human.
I was told be Thai immigration “Just don’t break our laws and you will be welcome here.” Will be travelling to Hong Kong on business soon, and that’s where some anxiety comes from. Anyway, to Micheal , Thomas, and everyone else, You are in my daily prayers. Thx for pushing me and holding my hand when I couldn’t see a way out.
Thailand and Singapore gave me the most anxiety. Hong Kong doesn’t even stamp your passport. If you lose that piece of paper with the stamp though there will be hell to pay.
Hopefully you have safe travels. All the flights from here to Hong Kong have been canceled due to the riots
How about Turks and cacios and any problems jack
I’ve been gone for a little while. Can anyone dispute this statement yet?
“No one with a marked passport has had their travel affected in any way.”
Thanks.
All we have here is anecdotal evidence, at best. However, I do not recall anyone specifically reporting a problem with a marked passport. Honestly, it has turned out to be very minor with people reporting that no one ever flips to that page (some travelers have purchased a plastic sleeve to tuck the pages in). Anyone with true border control scans the passport and likely sees that information but no one has reported being detained or denied because of it.
The real kick in the pants in the Angel Watch/InterPol notification. They don’t need to see what is or is not documented on your passport, they are already aware and waiting for you. In my case, the airlines notified me that the receiving country (Belize) advised them I would be denied entry.
I got some questions of thought, will the feds send alerts out even if a person is off the registry and is no longer required to comply with the IML? What if a person who is no longer required to comply with the IML that wants to travel to the country that he/she was turned away from before, what is the circumstance with that?
If you have been turned away from a country due to our governments green notice, then that country will still have your information in their computer. It doesn’t just go off their computers just because you’re no longer on the registry. You will need to contact an attorney in that country to find out if you might now be eligible to enter. Every country has their own immigration rules that can vary based on the custom’s official that interviews you.
How do you get in contact with an attorney of that country when there could be a language barrier especially when you have to explain such a very critical issue of traveling to the country that you were turned away from before, due to the effects of the IML?
Due to the special passport that registrants have to get with the endorsement stating as “sex offender convicted of a crime against minors”, does the registrant still have to notify their authorities 21 days prior to international travel even when he/she has the new passport for international travel, and are all countries made aware of this new passport implemented by our government and have to look for it, what is the circumstances with that will they be turned away and sent back, detained and arrested as if he/she were caught, or get extra screening and possible entry into the country?
You will find that it is common for educated people around the world to speak English as a second language. It likely wouldn’t be that hard to find an immigration attorney that assists English speakers.
The passport notification is just a notice stamped on the last page and we have not had any reports of anyone taking notice of that page. No country is obligated to look at that page or any page of your passport. It’s all up to the border/custom’s officer at that time. The passport endorsement does not relieve you of the duty to provide the 21 day notice.
Over at RTAG someone mentioned they were questioned by a US Marshall upon returning to the US because he had not disclosed all his travel locations. First I’ve heard about something like this happening.
This was the post on August 17 from James: “Just got back home from Asia, I had got my girlfriend pregnant just found out also, was hassled extra hard coming back into the country by customs and had to talk to a US marshall because I didn’t give them my full itinerary and everywhere I was going to be, I want to marry my GF but I know due to Adam Walsh act this is near impossible but with her being pregnant how could I go about registering my child as a US citizen?i heard that’s huge hurdle to overcome as well, why would they want to keep you away from your family? Really need Help!”
Anyone able to get more details about either this incident or other similar ones?
A person born abroad out-of-wedlock to a U.S. citizen father may acquire U.S. citizenship under Section 301(c) or 301(g) of the INA, as made applicable by the “new” Section 309(a) of the INA if:
A blood relationship between the person and the father is established by clear and convincing evidence;
The father had the nationality of the United States at the time of the person’s birth;
The father (unless deceased) has agreed in writing to provide financial support for the person until the person reaches the age of 18 years, and
While the person is under the age of 18 years —
the person is legitimated under the law of his/her residence or domicile,
the father acknowledges paternity of the person in writing under oath, or
the paternity of the person is established by adjudication of a competent court.
I would think this is an issue of citizenship, not of immigration. Once the child has established themselves as a citizen, they can get a passport and travel to the U.S. like any other citizen. They would also want to get the child a Social Security Card as soon as possible too. I don’t think they will even need to come to the U.S. to get accepted as a citizen. That child might even be able to sponsor your girlfriend to get a VISA to come into the U.S.?
@Lake County
Is there not precedent set by military members fathering children overseas where the children can come over with proof? I don’t think this is new overall.
The laws keep changing over the years. It all depends when a child was born. The various law changes are listed depending on DOB. There may also be special rules for military members, but that was not the original question asked. This is an easy subject to research for those with the time to read it all, but in the end, with the set of circumstances presented, this person should speak with an attorney for advice. If he marries this woman before the child’s birth in her country, then that would be a separate set of laws.
I work in immigration law. I actively comment on this site so I am keeping my usual handle anonymous.
301(d) applies to children born out of wedlock and out of the U.S. if the child was born between January 13, 1941 and December 24, 1952. U.S. citizenship is automatic at birth. (Not 301(c) as Lake County previously mentioned)
Sec 309 applies if the out of wedlock child is born outside U.S. after December 23, 1952. What this means is that the child will automatically have the nationality of his/her mother. The child can apply for U.S. Citizenship under 301(d). If the father honorably served in the military or worked for the U.S. government or int’l organization, then 301(g) applies.
The child CANNOT sponsor a visa for his/her foreign national parent unless that child is a U.S. citizen and at least 21 years of age.
My comment was just a cut and paste from a government website. I have no actual knowledge myself of these laws.
All citizenship starts first with getting residency, and before you get residency you have to get a Visa, and to get a Visa you’ve got to go through the gauntlet of presenting them with information about yourself. Certainly, for residency all other countries want your criminal record from the FBI. They don’t understand that because the FBI notes some sort of criminal background that you’re actually not a criminal. At least not if you are a registered citizen who received differed adjudication. If judgement was differed for you to go through a probation period, then after that’s completed the judgement is put off indefinitely. There should be only an arrest record, but there really is no criminal record, because you were never judged and found guilty of anything. In order to have a “criminal record” you have to have been convicted of a crime, and those with differed adjudication who’ve completed their probation have not been convicted of a crime, and should be able to move to any other country and show no criminal record at all… but the US lies about us… The US is corrupt, and pretends like we have been convicted of a crime. These other countries don’t understand that, because they think the US is a just place that doesn’t use shady, scummy practices like they do. This is why the Angel Watch is a big scam, because they warn other countries about so many people who’ve never been convicted of a crime, but they pretend like we have, they tell them we are “Sex Offenders”, or “convicted sex offenders” … Present tense. They slander us and tell other sovereign nations that we are Offenders. It’s such a scam, such an injustice, so scummy, and wrong.
The Feds clearly do some checking up regarding IML compliance: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/11/jeffrey-epstein-seen-with-young-girls-getting-off-his-plane-in-2018.html (Disregard the salacious headline and read the portions about IML).
Granted, in this case they were already on his tail–and apparently also approved only a 4-day notification–but it still goes to show USMS will and does check up on itineraries.
@AJ, et al,
Very interesting he got a four day notification through the system, but for what reason was the short notice trip given, e.g. family death, last minute business dealings, etc as allowed by US AG reg (anyone want to open that discussion again?), or was it merely he had the system in his pocket? His travel notification was submitted four days before he was supposed to travel, but he did not travel until three days after his supposed leaving day. Shouldn’t he have filed an amended travel plan? If his travel required him to deviate from the original plan during the travel, is that a problem because it wasn’t noted originally? If last minute travel plans filed with USMS are allowed by US AG reg, are last minute in-travel deviations not allowed if they cannot be noted on the filed travel notification? Is a stay required or is a day trip across a border ok?
Were the youngsters family, friends of the family, or for someone who worked for him on his island? Just because a paid for informant says they saw this, does not mean there are nefarious reasons despite his history.
The plot thickens and I bet some Congressional people are watching while possibly salivating for changes…
Don’t American citizens have a right to decide at any time that they like that they will pack up some bags and go to the airport and fly to some other country? I could decide that right now and be gone in like 3 or 4 hours. Americans have that right, don’t they?
Therefore, this illegal 21 day notification requirement SURELY only has to be met IF a person knows that far in advance that he/she will be traveling (e.g. perhaps you buy a plane ticket that far in advance). But I don’t think there is anything stopping me from deciding in the next 10 minutes that I want to go to France ASAP, for example. From what I’ve read, in that circumstance I do believe the illegal IML would only require that I tell the criminal regimes as soon as I decide to leave. I can decide, tell them, and then leave, all within the span of say 1 hour.
I don’t really know much about the Epstein story but I don’t care either. Because the Registries exist, I can’t care about anyone that the lying criminal regimes call “victims” … or often enough, pretend are “victims”. And I’m certainly not going to worry about “victims” who are suing for money. The second they do that, they aren’t a victim to me any longer. The credibility is gone and I don’t care.
It’s just asinine that the criminal federal regime is worrying now about if Epstein was traveling with children or not. Just asinine. What are they going to do about it? It is ridiculous that they are wasting actually limited resources and interviewing people at airports, etc. What are they going to do? Pass more idiotic, useless, counterproductive “laws”?
I travel around with children all the time. I’m around children all the time. Like literally every single day. Do they want to pretend that ANYONE, anywhere is watching me? What a joke. I hope that the vast majority of people who are listed on the hit lists live normal lives just about like everyone else and they are around children all the time. I don’t see why they wouldn’t.
Anyway, I don’t know anything about Epstein but I did read yesterday that U.S. Marshals were already investigating him for possible violations of the idiotic IML and interstate travel. So F the U.S. Marshals. F them for wasting our tax dollars and driving trillion $ deficits. For no useful or legitimate reason. If Epstein knew he was going to kill himself or be imprisoned for life, I just wish he would have allocated millions of dollars to pay REAL criminals to start offing U.S. marshals, one by one. That would be a fantasy of mine come true. Each one could have a note put on him/her that said, “Brought to you by the $EX Offender Registries. Wage war.”
@TS:
What’s also “interesting” about JE’s IML paperwork is the fact that he submitted it directly to DOJ. It says so right in the article and is properly accurate, given St. Thomas is not a State and thus doesn’t have the ability to give Uncle Sam the finger via the Tenth Amdt (i.e. 100% SORNA compliant due to direct federal oversight). So he gave the paperwork directly to the entity tasked with enforcing it, and they did nothing until well afterward. Gee, is anyone else “surprised” at the incompetence?
As for his travels, clearly he was just on a whimsical visit to France, et al. I mean c’mon, what reason is there to go to Monaco except for sun and fun, casinos, and Formula 1?
Regarding the young people with him, I know where I would put my money. But without proof one way or another, that’s all the more to be said. The case is as dead as he is.
@AJ
I didn’t catch the direct filling but that’s interesting. Same people with an interest in his care and feeding in NY too. Makes good media fodder for today (turns the page)
If they find enough evidence, I believe they will disinter JE, prosecute him to the fullest extent of their idiocy, and let him rot in jail for the rest of …. ……ummmm …. for eternity?? 🤪
Just transited through the new Istanbul airport and arrived in Athens with no issues. The next challenge will be entering nine more countries in the next two weeks, seven of which are not Schengen countries (marked Passport). I’ll try to post any problems if they come up.
Congrats have a good time!
Thanks for letting us know. Interesting even Turkey had no issue, though “transiting” may mean no passport control (depends on the country).
So… the guy from the Common sense laws youtube got a warrant for his arrest from Florida as he is in their lifetime registry but living in Germany.
He uploaded a video of it, but it’s been taken down now. He got like 3-4 Felony FTR charges and the warrant says extradite nation wide
He explained the situation but he kind of In the same pickle as the guy who got dragged back from the Philippines ….. he left Florida without notifying and just didn’t come back 😅 he wants to used this as fuel for his international lawsuit though so I’m waiting to see how it pans out.
I wonder..if..on his registration date he had sent a certified letter to wherever it is he is supposed to register and to whom is in charge.. with his current address and phone number with updated pic.. and they still issued an ftr..would he have grounds for dismissal?
I saw the video before it disappeared. The 4 warrants/charges are valid in the US, not internationally from what I saw. I am at odds with him now as he also said he escaped (from somewhere) with a weapon and using an aircraft (helicopter showed) to escape from somewhere (not sure if this is tied into when he left the US).
I am glad he got out of the US. Yeah, we will see what happens.
He basically bought a ticket and left. He said he had a passport already, which he decided to use it before he had to turn it in for the new one. I too saw the video and from what hes been saying, Germany doesn’t look too kindly on the US registry laws since they kind of mirror Nazi Germany. In a previous video his Lawyer there said that he was pretty safe being there and even in his warrant it did not say to arrest worldwide, just if he sets foot in the US again. I also saw in one of his older videos, he escaped from prison because a friend flew a helicopter onto the grounds and that’s how he escaped. In fact, most of his time locked away was due to the escape, NOT the original sexual charge. Considering he lived in Florida, one of the nations most draconian states for the registry, I dont blame him for leaving since he was not on probation or parole, yet they’re treated worse than illegals there. If he felt he had a better chance at life in Germany (according to him, hes doing great, even with his conviction known by the authorities), then good for him as long as he has no intentions of ever setting foot in the US again other than to be buried. Could one blame a black south African for wanting to leave during the Apartheid days? Its no different with people on the registry! My wife has agreed to leave the US to start a better life somewhere for our kids as well, but my biggest problem is not knowing the steps to obtain decent employment (I have a Bachelors in Information Security). I really have to make friends with people overseas (I’m thinking France, Germany, the Netherlands, etc.).
Entered into Macedonia yesterday and into Albania today with no problems (well I did have a serious scare, but it turned out to be a false alarm). I’ll explain later.
Went to renew my passport. Will find out in 2-3 weeks if I get the marker or not while living outside of the US.
Wish me luck 😅