Hi, I am an American living in Australia and have found that my passport has been cancelled due to back child support. I have called the child support enforcement in Hawaii and told them that I will work with them in getting this resolved. I have two young children here in Australia that I support and live with. My question is, is there a way to get my passport back and not have to pay the whole amount, ($40,000US dollars). I could pay a sum monthly but it would be low like $ 200.00AUD that's about $160.00US dollars but it's better then 0. Because my new partner makes more money then I, I have stayed at home with the kids and have no real income to speek of. This will change ofcoarse in a year when my son gos off to school. thanks for the help.

You may get better responses if you post this under family law. I would suggest that you speak with an attorney regarding this matter as every state is different. You will most likely have to pay the full amount, but I am not sure about the passport issue. You can locate an attorney through the attorney locator on Lawinfo's home page at http://www.lawinfo.com/. Some do offer free consultations.

Dear Sasjeep,

My name is Rob Olson and I am not a lawyer but I had the same problem. Here is my advice; take what is useful and leave what is not.

1.) Find creative but legal ways to remain in Australia without your US passport. If you are married to a local or have permanent resident status, you may be able to remain in the country even if your passport expires or is cancelled. BUT CHECK THIS OUT; Australia and America have reciprocity in regards to child support enforcement which means that a warrant from the US can be served in Australia.

2.) Contact your FOC, be contrite and offer a payment plan (so many dollars per WEEK. Weekly payments are better than monthly ones as each money order is one more reason for them to offer you a new passport). Also, point out to your case worker that a new passport guarantees you the chance to keep working which means continued payments.

3.)One a month send copies your child support payment receipts to your FOC so they have additional records that you are paying.

Remember, these people want your money and if you are paying something the chances of them leaving you alone increase significantly. Oh, one other thing; have you considered asking the mother of the child(or children) you are supporting to enter into a private agreement? If she agrees, she can contact the FOC, forgive arrears and waive future support (with the exception of TANF, which will follow you around forever). If she will does this and your arrears fall to under the US$5,000 threshold the States Department uses to blacklist passports, you will be eligible for another passport.

Best of Luck,

Rob Olson