Leslie Spoltore, a partner in our Wilmington, Delaware office and contributor to the firm’s Delaware Trial Practice Blog, wrote an instructive post on the Child Passport Issuance Alert Program.
Leslie notes that It is not unusual for parents who are involved in custody disputes to ask an attorney or other third party to hold a child’s passport in escrow to prevent one parent from leaving the country with the child. Another option is to enroll the child in the Child Passport Issuance Alert Program (“CPIAP”). The program, which is run by the U.S. Department of State, is available for U.S. Citizen children under the age of 18 and provides that if a passport application is filed on behalf of an enrolled child, the Department will contact and alert that child’s parent or parents. Leslie further suggests that to learn more about this program or to access an Entry Request Form, please see the Department web page.