International Travel

Important International Travel Information For Registrants

International travel is something that most folks forced to register as “sex offenders” are routinely denied. Sometimes, that’s simply because of general life moments like money or family issues. Other times, it’s because of a certain compelled-speech issue: The human rights-violating passport branding component of the 2016 International Megan’s Law, an amendment to the Adam Walsh Act.

Those of us here at Just Facts Not Fear, along with all nation signatories of international human rights legislation (ICCPR & ICESCR), believe that it is every human’s right to travel freely both within his country and to another without impedance. The American government has, on previous occasions, shown that it does not make an attempt to enact or protect the human rights for its citizens, especially for registrants.

We are here to offer up some assistance for what limited travel is available at the moment. This handy guide we have put together, along with the information you will find in our exclusive travel matrix, should hopefully help you decide where to plan your next trip.

Some quick points to keep in mind when checking which countries you’d like to visit:

  • Most countries that don’t require a visa for Americans will generally be much easier to enter.  This is because you won’t have to fill out an application and there is less of a chance that the immigration authorities will do a background check on you.  There are, however, some notable exceptions to this rule that you will certainly want to avoid.  Countries like Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Japan*, Mexico*, the UK, and Canada*, for example, are all visa-free travel for American citizens but will deny you entry either at the airport in the US (before you leave) or upon arrival if you don’t fly there directly.
  • Be careful of airlines that fly directly to countries that are strong allies of the US or rely on US assistance for economic or military aid. The airlines are directly connected to their home country’s immigration servers and may perform an NCIC lookup when scanning a passenger’s passport at the airport of departure. If there’s a hit, they will deny you a boarding pass if the destination country requires it. Some countries have laws barring ALL people with criminal records from entering, not just “sex offenders”. So please save yourself the MAJOR hassle and do not even try.  At the very least, always purchase refundable tickets before you venture to a new country! 
  • Islands and other colonies (mostly in the Caribbean and South Pacific) that are governed by foreign powers have similar entry requirements as their host nations. For example, Tahiti (French Polynesia) is governed by France and therefore follows French immigration policy. The governing nation is listed in () next to any such protectorate.

Hopefully this will provide you with some helpful ideas on how and where to plan your next trip abroad.  Don’t forget to read the ever-changing information about ETIAS if you are planning a trip to Europe in the near future.  Our updated, comprehensive travel matrix will help guide you through your travels, and also, read here what notice gets sent about you when you travel.  Bon Voyage!