Since the 1996 law created the passport denial program, the State Department’s enforcement has largely depended on whether a person came to it for passport-related services. Under a planned expansion, U.S. officials told The Associated Press that the State Department will begin revoking passports on its own initiative, using data the Health and Human Services Department provides, rather than waiting for individuals to apply for renewals or consular help.

The officials said the change is expected to begin soon and will be rolled out in tiers because many passport holders could be affected. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the change has not yet been publicly announced, and they said the number of people potentially impacted was not immediately clear but could be in the thousands.

Under the approach described to AP, the first group to be affected would be passport holders who owe more than $100,000 in past-due child support. One of the officials said fewer than 500 people meet that threshold and could avoid having their passport revoked if they enter into a payment plan with HHS after being notified of the pending revocation.

The officials also said the threshold could later be lowered, which they said would expand the universe of people at risk of losing passport access. They did not provide a timetable for any later changes or estimate how many people could be affected after the threshold drops.

In response to AP’s questions about the plan, the State Department said it was “reviewing options to enforce long-standing law to prevent those owing substantial amounts of child support from neglecting their legal and moral obligations to their children.” The department added: “It is simple: deadbeat parents need to pay their child support arrears.”

AP reported that while passport revocations for unpaid child support of more than $2,500 had been permitted under the 1996 legislation, State Department enforcement previously focused on requests for renewals or other consular services. Under the new plan described by the officials, the State Department would instead start acting based on data shared with it by HHS.

The Office of Child Support Enforcement at HHS said the passport denial program has taken in nearly $621 million in past-due child support payments since it began in 1996, AP reported. HHS did not respond to questions AP asked about how many people are in arrears.

Associated Press writer Ali Swenson contributed to this report.