The United States has deported more than 25,000 people to countries where they had no previous ties under agreements reached with 35 nations, according to an investigation published by Forbidden Stories and a consortium of international journalists.
The investigation found that at least 25,447 people had been transferred to third countries by August 31, 2026. Around 20,000 were sent to Mexico, while others were transferred to 27 countries across Latin America, Africa and the Pacific. Agreements with seven additional countries had also been finalised.
The arrangements were reached during President Donald Trump’s second administration, with the receiving countries agreeing to take migrants whom the US could not legally return directly to their countries of origin. The terms differ from one agreement to another, including the nationalities covered and whether people with criminal records can be accepted.
According to the investigation, the US government has earmarked about $410 million to support the arrangements, with funds intended for receiving governments and international organisations involved in migration and refugee assistance. Internal State Department records reportedly show that $81 million was designated for governments that signed the agreements, while more than $178 million was intended for the International Organization for Migration and $123 million for UNHCR.
The report also identified the State Department’s Office of Remigration, created in May 2025, as the division responsible for much of the negotiations and payments. The office is headed by diplomat Christian Jove Ehrhardt.
Cameroon is among the countries involved in the arrangements. The country signed a memorandum of understanding with the US in December to accept deportees, while the first flight carrying deportees arrived there on January 14. The US also announced additional funding for UNHCR operations in Cameroon.
Other agreements have involved direct financial arrangements with receiving countries. Palau, a small Pacific island nation, agreed to accept up to 75 third country nationals in exchange for $7.5 million, although only three people had been transferred there at the time of the investigation.
Eswatini has also received deportees under an agreement worth more than $5 million. Thirty two people had arrived in the country since July 2025, with the arrangement allowing for up to 160 people, including some with criminal records.
The investigation said 49 of Africa’s 54 countries had been approached about accepting people deported from the US who have no connection to the destination countries.
The arrangements have drawn scrutiny from immigration lawyers and rights groups, who have raised concerns about the legal protections available to people transferred to countries where they have no established ties. Earlier reporting also examined US efforts to persuade African countries to accept deportees through visa restrictions and other measures.
The involvement of UN agencies has also attracted attention. UNHCR said it was not a party to the bilateral deportation agreements and that US funding it received was being used within its mandate, including efforts to strengthen asylum systems.
The International Organization for Migration likewise defended its involvement, saying its decision to accept funding was based on whether its participation could improve conditions for the migrants affected.
The scale of the transfers has added to an ongoing legal debate over the treatment of people sent to third countries and the procedures that should apply before such removals take place.
