If you’re an American, traveling to Europe after 2021 will not be as easy as it once was.
Presently, you can visit Europe…the 26 countries within the Schengen area…without a visa.
Starting in 2021, Americans will need permission to visit Europe.
Europe will require all foreigners, including Americans and Canadians, to obtain a pre-screening to before they can board a plan; you won’t even be able to get on the plane without the pre-screening approval.
Each traveler will be required to apply for the right to visit Europe online. You will have to provide the basic biometric information (name, date of birth, etc.) passport information, as well as questions about your health, criminal record, and any European immigration history.
Here is how the process will work.
For most Americans, receiving an approval will not be a problem. The EU estimates it will grant about 95% of the Americans who apply three years of access to the region.
But what if you are part of the 5% that doesn’t get one.
Over 12 million Americans travel to Europe each year. So upwards of 600,000 Americans could have trouble entering the EU starting in 2021.
The reason you may not get approved
An applicant will be checked across multiple databases right down to your credit history.
Aside from health concerns and a criminal record, a poor credit history can hurt your chances of getting approved.
Can the US restrict you from traveling because of a poor credit history?
You bet.
Due to a law passed by Congress in 2015, the IRS is required to deny or revoke passports for people who have an overdue tax debt of $51,000 or more.
Because of this law, hundreds of thousands are at risk for passport denial because of tax debt.
Last year the US government canceled 362,000 passports, all from people who they believed owed some back taxes.
I say ‘believed’ because they don’t actually have to prove it.
In cases such as this, there’s very little due process — you don’t have an opportunity to appear to go in front of an impartial judge to plead your case.
Instead, revoking a passport is a simple administrative procedure made by someone sitting behind a desk.
Aside from taxes, the government can also deny or revoke a passport if you owe (or if they believe that you owe) more than $2,500 worth of child support.
Can a passport be revoked for unpaid student loans?
There is a big problem with unpaid student loans that is causing borrowers a lot of angst. Student loan has reached a crisis level topping $1.5 trillion in 2018.
I reported on this in a former post of how stuhttps://terrencejameson.com/student-loan-debt-is-killing-the-american-dream/dent loan debt is destroying the American dream.
With this much money owed the government, it’s smart to wonder if revoking passports can be extended to borrowers that default on federal loans.
Although this has not happened, yet, the answer is yes; I’m afraid so!
If it were to happen, I would imagine that the student loan debt would have to be 1) greater than $51,000; b) be a federal, not private loan; c) would have to be in default (which occurs after 270 days of delinquency).
US Government gets tough on Student Loan Defaults
The Department of Justice is suing borrowers that have defaulted on their federal loan.
In nearly every one of these suits, the borrower loses and the government wins.
What do they win? A lien on the borrower’s assets.
If you own a house you will not be able to sell it until the lien is removed.