The United States has deported more than 25,000 migrants to countries with which they have no known ties under secretive agreements involving 35 nations, according to an investigation published Monday.
The investigation by Forbidden Stories, conducted with a consortium of international journalists, found that at least 25,447 people had been deported to third countries by August 31, 2026.
The deportations have taken place since President Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025, as Washington reached agreements with developing countries to receive migrants who cannot legally be returned to their countries of origin.
According to the investigation, the US has earmarked about $410 million for the arrangements, with funds going either directly to receiving governments or through United Nations agencies involved in facilitating returns.
Mexico receives majority of deportees
Around 20,000 of those deported were sent to Mexico, while thousands of others were transferred to 27 countries across Latin America, Africa and the Pacific.
Agreements have also been finalised with seven additional countries, according to Forbidden Stories.
The terms differ from one country to another, including which nationalities can be transferred and whether people with criminal records may be accepted.
An earlier AFP investigation reported that Washington was using visa bans and other restrictions targeting African countries to pressure them into accepting third-country deportees.
Lawyers told AFP that some deportees were being placed in a “legal black hole”, detained in countries where they have no ties and where their legal protections may be limited.
Nearly 50 African countries approached
Forbidden Stories reported that 49 of Africa’s 54 countries had been approached about accepting migrants deported from the US.
The investigation identified the State Department’s Office of Remigration as the little-known division responsible for most of the negotiations and payments.
Created in May 2025, the office is headed by Christian Jove Ehrhardt, a 41-year-old diplomat who previously worked as a security officer.
The report detailed his visits to Cameroon, which signed a memorandum of understanding with the US in December to accept deportees.
A week later, Cameroon signed a five-year health assistance programme worth nearly $400 million.
The following month, the US State Department announced an additional $30 million for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Cameroon to “facilitate the voluntary return of refugees and combat illegal immigration.”
The first plane carrying deportees arrived in Cameroon on January 14.
Countries receive payments
Some of the agreements include direct payments to governments.
Palau, a Pacific island nation with a population of fewer than 18,000, signed an agreement in December 2025 to accept up to 75 third-country nationals in exchange for $7.5 million.
So far, only three people have been transferred under the arrangement.
In Eswatini, 32 people have arrived since July 2025, out of a possible 160 under an agreement worth more than $5 million. The country has accepted deportees with criminal records, according to the investigation.
Of the $410 million planned for the agreements, internal State Department records reviewed by Forbidden Stories showed that $81 million was earmarked for signatory governments.
More than $178 million was intended for the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), while another $123 million was earmarked for UNHCR.
UN agencies defend involvement
The involvement of UN agencies has attracted criticism.
UNHCR told Forbidden Stories that it was not a party to the bilateral agreements and said US funding was being used in line with its mandate to strengthen asylum systems.
An IOM spokesperson said the agency’s decision to accept funding was based “on a single question: whether our engagement will improve the lives of the migrants affected.”
The spokesperson added: “In these instances, we believe strongly it does.”
The findings were reported by Forbidden Stories and a consortium of international journalists, with AFP also reporting on aspects of the US deportation arrangements.
