The Essentials

FAST Act & How It Can Impact Your Passport

Chances are you’ve never heard of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, the FAST Act or section 32101, which allows the IRS to revoke your passport if you owe Uncle Sam.

If you’re delinquent on your taxes, it can not only seize your passport, but also deny you a new or renewal passport until you pay up.

And the IRS has been collecting. What’s the dollar threshold to be considered in passport trouble? It’s about $52,000. But remember, that may not be the amount you initially owed. It may be the total amount now owed, including interest and penalties.

So if you want to travel outside the U.S., it might be a good idea to pay your tax bill inside the U.S.