In this International Travel 2020 post, the information is identical to the International Travel 2019 post. We added a new post for 2020 in order to keep the discussion manageable. Please help us by sticking to the topic of International Travel only.
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From 2019: 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.
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
Forms
Publications
- RTAG Travel Matrix
- IML Dispatch (SMART Office, Feb 2016)
- ETIAS
Older Posts
- International Travel 2019 (2019)
- International Travel after IML (2016)
- International Travel – Mexico (2014)
- International Travel (2013)
Anyone know current status of passport issuance in 2020? I received my first passport last year without the identifier and it was revoked after I traveled. Once this happened, I started researching the issue (wish I had done this earlier!). According to the regulations, the Secretary of State was not authorized by law to issue the passport without it, nevertheless, mine was issued anyway. Instead of correcting their error, they simply revoked it with the only remedy for me being to reapply. I fought this in correspondence and via calls to them, to no avail. In resignation I ended up reapplying.
My question is this: Are they still making this error on people’s passports? My advice to anyone who was issued a passport without the required statement, but who haven’t yet had their passports revoked, use the “Correct a data or printing error” option on their website while your passport is still valid. Perhaps you might have a chance to get it remedied before they revoke it. Once that happens, however, you’re out of luck it seems.
Is there the possibility of a class-action suit for those of us who have been wronged by the State Department in this manner? Why should we have to pay twice for a passport that should have been printed correctly the first time? The law seems to be on our side in this regard.
For those who wish to travel to Europe, apparently, ETIAS may be delayed and may not start until 2022:
https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/etias-launch-may-be-delayed-until-introduction-of-ees/
👍
Anyone with experience with being removed from a state registry and still been detained or denied entry? My state of Washington will remove me automatically (I will verify it happens according to statute) in a year for a misdemeanor offense, and I am waiting to apply for a new passport until then. At that time I will have been on the registry for ten years and not required to register under National SORNA, should not have the tainted passport, and will not have to give notice of international travel (as long as I don’t live in California or similar state). I do not, however, expect there to be clear sailing for everywhere I go in the future.
About five years ago, with legal paperwork filled out by an attorney, I tried to enter Canada but was turned back at the boarder. I am hoping Canada will allow me in after I am off the registry. I will want to travel elsewhere too. A lot can change between now and then, but am planning ahead.
Feedback?
I’m in the same boat as you James – I had some international travel planned so I applied for a new passport early about 1-1/2 years ago, hoping to get a marked one and avoid the revocation. Of course, they sent one without the marking. I ran this all the way up the flag pole with our state registration specialist, who checked with her contacts in the fed offices (US Marshals, etc.). The instruction they provided was to have me continue using the new passport, and when/if it was revoked they’d let me know. Great.
I traveled overseas at the end of last year, and still have not received a revocation letter. They did the usual secondary screening at the airport when I got back, but that was all. In fact, I’ve submitted notification for another trip overseas (about 5 weeks ago), and so far nothing from the feds. Not sure what to make of it. Maybe I haven’t made the Angel Watch list yet? Maybe they just haven’t gotten to my name yet?
For anyone that has reapplied after revocation… What was the process? How long did it take to get a marked passport? Did you have to do anything special to get the marked passport after revocation or did it just arrive that way automatically?
I don’t see anything on the passport application where we can indicate why we’re reapplying, so it would be up to them to figure it out.
I have a passport without the identifier on it and have been traveling to Mexico to visit wife’s family and always get sent to secondary inspection where I get apologies from the agents for the hassle, (I am Retired Military). So far no issues on passport being revoked.
Does anyone have recent experience traveling/vacationing in Puerto Rico (I know it’s not international)?
The flight there is domestic (no customs or 21 day notice), but do you have to register once there? After how many days? Even if your stay is temporary (a week or two), and you will not be “residing” there.
There are discrepancies between many state laws and the federal law with regard to providing notice if you are going to be away from your home for more than XX number of nights. For example, Wisconsin doesn’t require notification until I’m away from my registered residence for 10 nights, but the SORNA guidelines call for notification for 7 or more nights. More than once I’ve provided notification the our state’s registry for a 7 or 8 night trip, only to have them tell me it’s not necessary. I have to remind them I’m doing this to comply with the federal requirement. Would really suck to get stopped for a traffic violation on the 9th day and end up in custody because I didn’t do this.
This doesn’t really apply to the current conversation though, as ALL international travel requires notice 21 days in advance, with few exceptions.
Never volunteer information more than what is needed.
“I just returned from Puerto Rico and, when registering, asked for the related law. The link I was provided is http://www.lexjuris.com/lexlex/Leyes2011/lexl2011243.htm”
Their law enforcement provided a google link instead of the actual law? I don’t question Lexus but why?
“The “no provision for visitors” is not in the law…”. IE, there is no provision legally.
If im reading my paperwork correctly after i register. When it comes to international travel you have to inform them 21 days before you leave, if you will stay longer than 7 days in another country. Im in Michigan.
Anybody else out there read it this way? Sounds to me as long as your back on the 7th day you dont have to give the 21 days notice. Maybe this is Michigan law and the Fed law reads different. I haven’t seen the Fed law in writing.
@TD
Fed law: 21 days notification prior to international travel. Stay duration doesn’t matter. Regardless of what MI says, 21 days.
@someone who cares
State law will always apply in the state. Federal law doesn’t usually apply until you cross a state line.
For example, I can travel for up to 10 days in Wisconsin without having to notify our registry people that I’m away from home. But if I cross into a neighboring state, I’ve got to be concerned about the Federal rules which set the limit at 7 days.
There have been cases with other types of violations where the Feds have tried to prosecute cases that didn’t involve crossing a state line by invoking the Interstate Commerce laws, but I don’t know if that’s been done for a registration violation yet.
@M C
Wisconsin most certainly does take the 21 day notification of international travel. Talk to your registration specialist (not the office in Madison). There is no form, so you have to do this on your own by gathering the necessary information. One nice thing about Wisconsin is that you can provide this type of thing by fax or email, and if you ask the registration specialist will send you a confirmation once things are processed.
I’ve done this a number of times, and they will forward to information to the US Marshal’s office.
@Matt
Be careful with those spur of the moment trips. You never know when they’ll catch on and have someone waiting for you on your return. According to the SORNA guidelines, states are permitted to make exceptions to the 21 days notice rule, but even then you’d be required to do something.
One of the big points in the IML lawsuits was how the 21 day rule would severely limit a registrant’s ability to travel for emergency and last minute trips.
@TS
The SORNA Final Guidelines make a clear distinction between a residence and temporary lodging.
As provided in SORNA § 111(13), residence refers to “the location of the individual’s home or other place where the individual habitually lives.”
Regarding temporary lodging:
“The authority under SORNA § 114(a)(7) is accordingly exercised to provide that jurisdictions must require sex offenders to provide information about any place in which the sex offender is staying when away from his residence for seven or more days…”
Note that the temporary lodging section mentions that this is when the offender “is staying away from his residence”, which would mean to me that they are talking about two distinct and different things.
Therefore, my take on this is when the Guidelines state:
“Section 113(c) provides that a sex offender must, not later than three business days after each change of name, residence, employment, or student status, appear in person in at least one jurisdiction…”
They are clearly talking about a change in residence, not a temporary lodging. The essence of temporary lodging is just that, temporary.
Now that said, I’m sure that some states will have totally different understandings of all this, as might some local jurisdictions. For example, Milwaukee defines residence as “the place where one sleeps”. According to the city attorney, that means if you sleep somewhere for one night, it’s your residence. Of course, the federal rules wouldn’t change just because the local rules do, but it’s important to keep track of all the various layers to this game so that they have nothing to ding us on.
You know how Michigan and other states let you know of your requirements, especially when you go to register? It says 21 day notice, if you are gone for more than 7 days right on the paperwork. I do get where you are coming from tho.
My question is this: What if you never come on this site? How the heck would you know the federal requirement if Michigan and other states do not tell you, and if you never received a notice from the federal government? I’m aware that many of us know, ONLY because we visit this site. But, if you didn’t, how the heck would you know this requirement? We’re talking about over 800,000 registrants. Did anyone get a letter in the mail from the Fed. My State never told me anything, and the only law I have, is the one I sign every 90 days when i register. They never have at once mentioned or put on paper the federal requirement. You can’t just say “you’re expected to know”. Thats bs
Considering travel to Italy – hopefully before ETIAS kicks in – my husband doesn’t have the marked passport – do I need to be concerned that it’s not marked when traveling to Schengen nations now? (I figure it’ll change with ETIAS)
@Will Allen
Do you have any case law that demonstrates the RIGHT of a US citizen to leave the country?
I’ve searched for it, and so far have only found case law to show that travel between the states cannot be impeded. If there was case law to show that we have a right to travel internationally, your argument would be much stronger.
From what I’ve read, it seems that the feds are in control of the ports and our passports, and there is nothing much to our ability to leave the country. I’d love to learn of something if you know of it.
Go to any international border and try to cross (walking, in a vehicle (bus, truck, car, etc.), or flying… anything short of digging a tunnel or similar), without a passport and see what happens. Our “right” to travel international is at our governments discretion; that does not sound like a “right” to me.
@ Will Allen:. If they are bent on us not leaving the U.S., we should all vacation (while spending as little money AS POSSIBLE) in Chris Smith’s New Jersey district. He pushed for the IML – he and his constituents should have to suffer the repercussions of it. Let’s have a huge Registrant Conference there….. And we’ll let everyone know we’re there because of Chris Smith! 😠
A little over a year ago Steve posted about Green Notice requirements namely Article 89 of the rules on processing of data. So to some extent this is a re-hash of something old but I want to discuss it again. The rule specifically requires an assessment to determine ones threat to public safety in order to send out a green notice on someone. The green notice sent as part of IML would fail to meet requirements for such a notice because it is a blanket notice that applies to all RSO by how it triggers a green notice without an actual assessment. Further, the tiers in SORNA that these notices mostly rely on are not an assessment of ones danger to public safety but simply puts different types of offenses in different categories which have absolutely no value in predicting recidivism. So how are these notices even allowed by Interpol (unless Interpol first changes its rules)? And what can we do, if anything, to demand Interpol stop allowing IML green notices from the United States until assessments are actually performed in accordance with the rules rather than being sent based on the US code in IML that generates a blanket green notice without the required assessment. I think this is important for two reasons. 1. An assessment of actual danger to public safety can be more easily challenged by experts in court on an individual basis over blanket rules in IML and 2. A country which assumes the United States is following the assessment requirements in accordance with the Interpol rules is relying on this assessment for their admissibility decision and assumes the threat to public safety is in significant enough after an assessment that a green notice still needed to be sent. The green notice is in fact worse than even the passport marking in this regard because while the passport marking notifies a country that you simply committed a sex crime in the past, the green notice suggests that you are likely to commit one in the future based on a supposed assessment that never even occured.
For what it’s worth, the bureacrats who responded to one of my FOIA requests to the U.S. Marshals Service seemed overly concerned about receiving any complaints. So, yes, of course, I’ll be filing a complaint. 😊
Just out of curiosity, if your state doesn’t require for you to report to them if its less than 3 days trip, how would the state and federal know how long you stayed traveling state by state for less than 3 days sorna requirement? Could this be a loophole for state by state travels? Even if some states have laws in place that you can visit 3 times out of the year or for 7-14 days total before required to register. anyone have knowledge on this?
I have a question concerning passports.
I received my passport without the endorsement. If I travel and my passport is revoked, do I have to pay for the replacement passport?
I thought I read that if you submit it for corrections it will be corrected without charge? Is that true?