Convicted Pedophiles to Be Identified on New US Passports

America's registered child sex offenders will now have to use passports identifying them for their past crimes when traveling overseas. The State Department said Wednesday it would begin revoking passports of registered child sex offenders and will require them to apply for a new one that carries a "unique identifier" of their status, the AP reports. Those applying for a passport for the first time will not be issued one without the identifier, which will be a notice printed inside the back cover of the passport book that reads: "The bearer was convicted of a sex offense against a minor, and is a covered sex offender pursuant to (US law)."

The department said in a statement posted to its travel.state.gov website that registered child sex offenders will no longer be issued smaller travel documents known as passport cards because they do not have enough room to fit the notice. The changes come in response to last year's "International Megan's Law," which aims to curb child exploitation and child sex tourism. The State Department, which issues US passports, said it will start notifying those affected as soon as it receives their names from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the Department of Homeland Security. (Australia plans to simply stop issuing passports to convicted pedophiles.)