The United States has deported more than 25,000 people under secretive agreements with 35 countries to take migrants with no ties to those nations. This is according to an investigation published on Monday by Forbidden Stories, which found that since US President Donald Trump took office in January 2025, Washington has been signing deals with developing countries to take migrants who cannot legally be sent home.
The investigation found that the administration has earmarked $410 million to be paid directly to the receiving countries, or to UN agencies to facilitate the returns. At least 25,447 people had already been deported to third countries by August 31, 2026. The vast majority, around 20,000, were sent to Mexico, but the rest were dispersed to 27 other countries across Latin America, Africa, and the Pacific.
The deals vary, including over which nationalities can be deported and whether people with criminal records can be accepted. An AFP investigation earlier this year found Washington is using visa bans and restrictions on African countries to strongarm them into accepting deportees. Lawyers told AFP that deportees were being thrown into a "legal black hole", held without charge in countries where they have no ties and few if any rights.
Forbidden Stories said 49 of Africa's 54 countries had been approached about accepting third-country deportees. A little-known State Department division called the Office of Remigration, created in May 2025, has handled most of the negotiations and payments. The office is headed by Christian Jove Ehrhardt, a 41-year-old diplomat who previously worked as a security officer.
The report details Ehrhardt's visits to Cameroon, which signed a memorandum of understanding with the US in December on accepting deportees. A week later, it also signed a five-year health assistance programme worth nearly $400 million. The following month, the State Department said it would provide a further $30 million to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Cameroon to "facilitate the voluntary return of refugees and combat illegal immigration."
Other agreements have involved direct payments to governments. Palau, a small Pacific island nation with a population of under 18,000, signed an agreement in December 2025 to accept up to 75 third-country nationals in return for $7.5 million. However, only three people have so far been sent under the agreement. Of the $410 million planned for the agreements, internal State Department records showed that $81 million was earmarked for signatory governments.
The agencies involved in the deportation process have faced criticism over their involvement, although UNHCR told Forbidden Stories that it was not party to the bilateral agreements and that US funding was being used in line with its mandate to strengthen asylum systems. An IOM spokesperson told Forbidden Stories that the agency's decisions to accept funding rested "on a single question: whether our engagement will improve the lives of the migrants affected."
Key points
- The US has deported over 25,000 people to third countries under secretive agreements with 35 nations.
- The administration has earmarked $410 million to facilitate the returns, with $81 million for signatory governments.
- The deals have been criticized by rights groups, with lawyers saying deportees are being thrown into a "legal black hole".
