A primary concern for clients who seek to remove Red Notices from INTERPOL’s databases is what happens after they succeed in their efforts. There are many purposes for seeking the removal of a Red Notice, but a main focus for most clients is to be able to travel more easily and without the concern that they could be detained.

In my experience, it is rare for a person to be detained by authorities of INTERPOL’s member countries after a Red Notice has been removed. When INTERPOL removes a notice from its databases, it also advises its member countries’ National Central Bureaus to update their respective domestic databases. Member countries are obliged to maintain current databases in order to utilize INTERPOL’s tools. Most often, they do.

However, it has happened on occasion that a former Red Notice subject is stopped even after their Red Notice is removed.  When that has happened, my clients have presented to the authorities the CCF’s decision to remove the Red Notice, along with the letter that the CCF provides showing that their data does not exist in INTERPOL’s databases.  This has been sufficient to explain the situation to the authorities, who have then released the clients to continue with their travels.

Another step that we take in such situations is to contact the CCF and explain that the member country has failed to update its databases, and request a reminder directly from INTERPOL to the member country for the data to be updated domestically as well. While INTERPOL has no direct control over its member countries’ actions, it does have a working relationship with the NCBs and it has been supportive in our efforts to encourage countries to update their data.

It is critical that a former Red Notice subject travel with the CCF’s decision and status letter once they succeed in removing a Red Notice. There are other steps that can be taken to make travel plans go more smoothly, and I’ll address those in the next post.

As always, thoughts and comments are welcomed.