# Map 21



## Dublinyank (Feb 10, 2014)

Is there any evidence that people are being detained or having passports at airports confiscated due to non filing? I read recently about map-21 and am concerned as I have not filed for some years and recently discovered a letter from irs from 2010 requesting info on taxes for 2008 (long story) for 1099 stock activity. I will be doing a mass filing to catch up on delinquent tax forms. But I'm not sure I can do it before my travel planned dates.

No posts in here on this topic yet

I may need to travel to usa soon. Anyone know if this new law has been implemented?


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## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

No reports on this forum of tax questions having been asked upon entry to the US. (Not to say it hasn't happened, just haven't heard any reports here. Obviously if you had a warrant out for your arrest on charges of tax evasion or something it might be unwise to travel. But presumably that's not the case for simple non-filing.)


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## Dublinyank (Feb 10, 2014)

How would I know if there was a warrant out for me? I've not gotten any further notices since... But that law suggests that no warrant is needed, just IRS noncompliance


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## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

Phone the customs office at the airport you were planning to land at? 

I think it requires a fair bit more than non-compliance for a warrant to be issued - you'd probably know about it.

As I said, there have been no reports on this forum (and Google isn't turning up anything either) to suggest that US customs asks questions about tax compliance when you enter the country. You *might* get questions if you enter on a non-US passport with a US birthplace, but they don't currently seem to care about tax status.

Given that millions of US persons abroad are non-compliant, and there are legitimate reasons (e.g. low income) to not file returns so the lack of filing does not necessarily equate to non-compliance, this is not something for which expats are being hassled at the border.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Just did a quick google search and it seems that the tax related provisions in this map-21 legislation only relate to those owing more than $50,000 in unpaid taxes. If that's your situation, then "go with God" as the expression goes.

But I have yet to hear of anyone being stopped or even hassled at the border for non-filing.
Cheers,
Bev


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

The tax-related passport revocation provision in 2012's MAP-21 legislation did not survive. It was a Senate amendment that did not make it into the final legislation. It's likely, though, it will reappear at some point in the future.

The reason I think it's likely to reappear in some form is that it's already a problem obtaining or renewing a U.S. passport if you owe $2,500 or more in child support. If an outstanding child support bill is a reason to be denied a passport, why not an outstanding tax bill? That's logical and, perhaps more importantly, if one is legal the other should be, too.

On edit: The child support provision was introduced in 1996 with President Clinton's "welfare reform" legislation. Passport revocation is also possible. There are several court cases that upheld the legality of that provision.


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