Can you travel on supervised release? Yes, but not freely. Most people on federal supervised release have a standard condition that limits travel outside their federal judicial district, the area a federal court covers. Here is how that rule works and how to ask for permission.
The defendant shall not knowingly leave the federal judicial district where he or she is authorized to reside without first getting permission from the court or the probation officer.
Can you travel out of state on federal supervised release?
Only with permission, if your judgment includes the standard travel condition. Federal districts usually follow state lines, so leaving your state almost always means leaving your district. One exception is the District of Wyoming, which includes the parts of Yellowstone National Park that sit in Montana and Idaho (28 U.S.C. § 131). Some states have more than one district, so a trip inside your state can also cross a district line.
At the start of supervision, your probation officer should explain your district's boundaries and how to ask for permission to travel, according to the federal courts' overview of supervision conditions.
How do you ask for travel permission?
Ask your probation officer, and ask early. The federal courts' guidance for officers says to submit travel requests in advance, so the officer has time to check the nature and purpose of the trip. Be ready to give the dates, where you will stay and why you are going.
Before allowing a trip, officers are told to consider:
- any risk the trip would pose to others;
- whether you are following your conditions, especially paying money you owe under the judgment or for family support; and
- whether the trip would get in the way of your job, school or family ties.
If you get permission, you will usually be told to call your officer when you get back. Officers may require more check-ins for people they see as higher risk. No rule promises that a request will be approved.
Can you travel outside the United States?
The standard condition does not single out foreign travel, but it does require permission to leave your district. Under the federal courts' guidance, probation officers should get the court's express consent before allowing travel outside the United States. Officers are also told to check with the other country's consulate about any entry rules.
The standard conditions do not mention passports. If your judgment has a special condition about a passport, follow it. Ask your officer before you apply for or use one.
Can you move to another district?
You need approval first. A standard condition says you must live at a place your officer approves and give at least 10 days' notice before you move (USSG §5D1.3(b)(2)(E)).
If you are allowed to move, the sentencing court may transfer jurisdiction over your supervised release to the federal court in the new district, with that court's agreement. After a transfer, the new court can use all the powers the law gives over a person on supervised release (18 U.S.C. § 3605). For other changes to your conditions, see how to modify supervised release.
What happens if you travel without permission?
Leaving your district without permission breaks a condition of supervised release. That is a violation. When the violation is not itself a crime, the Guidelines treat it as a Grade C violation (USSG §7C1.1).
A probation officer must report a Grade C violation unless the officer finds that it is minor, not part of a continuing pattern, that not reporting it will not put a person or the public at undue risk, and that not reporting it fits any order the court has given about reporting violations (USSG §7C1.2(b)). What the court does next is up to the judge. See what happens if you violate supervised release.
What should a travel request include?
Give the dates you would leave and return, each place you will go, where you will stay, how you can be reached and why you are going. Ask your probation office how it wants requests sent.
Explain how the trip would affect work, treatment, reporting or drug testing. Keep a record of the permission and any limits on it.
There is no national number of days' notice that makes approval certain. Your conditions and local practice control. Do not buy tickets you cannot cancel on the assumption that the request will be granted.
What if the trip is urgent or permission is denied?
An emergency does not cancel a travel condition. Contact your probation officer right away and explain the timing.
If permission is denied, or a limit on work travel keeps causing a serious problem, a lawyer can look at whether to ask the court for permission or for a change to the condition. A request that is waiting for a ruling is not permission to leave.
Foreign travel raises questions beyond supervision, such as passport limits, the other country's entry rules and any registration duty that applies. Approval from one authority does not mean every other legal requirement has been met.
Is a transfer of supervision the same as moving?
Not always. Under § 3605, a transfer of jurisdiction needs the agreement of the court in the new district, so being supervised by an officer there is not necessarily a formal transfer.
Before filing anything, confirm which court has authority over your case, even if an officer in another district now supervises you.