The Trump administration has deported more than 25,000 people to countries where they have no connections since returning to office in 2025. The scale of these removals relies on agreements with dozens of nations and a dedicated State Department unit established to manage the logistics and funding.

Officials have struck deals with 35 countries allowing the United States to deport migrants and asylum seekers to those nations. The Office of Remigration, a State Department division created in May 2025 and headed by Christian Jove Ehrhardt, has handled most of the negotiations and payments for the deportation deals.

Approximately 20,000 deportees were sent to Mexico under the third-country arrangements. More than 5,000 other deportees were sent on flights to countries in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and central Asia where they had no prior connection.

People from Peru and Colombia have been deported to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Nika, an Iranian woman, was deported to the Central African Republic after being rearrested by the Department of Homeland Security despite having been granted legal protections and released by a judge.

A US federal appeals court ruled that the Trump administration’s third-country removals policy was unlawful because it violated due process. The US government has 90 days to appeal the court’s decision and is expected to do so.

Timeline

Palau signed an agreement in December 2025 to accept up to 75 third-country nationals in return for $7.5 million, but only three people have been sent under the agreement so far. Cameroon signed a memorandum of understanding with the US in December to accept deportees, followed by a five-year health assistance programme worth nearly $400 million. The first plane carrying deportees arrived in Cameroon on 14 January. On 20 August, four Cubans, a Brazilian, and a Cameroonian refused to disembark in Liberia and were subsequently sent to Equatorial Guinea.

What's New

There is no earlier incident specifically mentioned in the provided documents that involves the Trump administration deporting people to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) or to Equatorial Guinea, with the same pattern of deportations described in the context of the 2025-2026 period. Research titled "Implementing a Sweeping Anti-DEI Agenda in the Second Trump Administration" was published in 2026 in The Future of DEI in the Higher Education Workforce.

The US government has earmarked $410 million to be paid directly to receiving countries or to UN agencies to facilitate the returns. $81 million of the earmarked funds was allocated for signatory governments, $178 million for the UN's International Organisation for Migration, and $123 million for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

Why It Matters

The deportation of more than 25,000 individuals to nations where they lack prior connections represents an expansion of US immigration enforcement mechanisms. The establishment of the Office of Remigration and the allocation of $410 million in funds demonstrate a structured approach to third-country removals that extends beyond traditional repatriation to country of origin.

The judicial ruling that the policy violates due process introduces a legal constraint on the administration's operations, though an appeal is expected. The secrecy surrounding the specific terms of the agreements with 35 countries limits public oversight of the financial and diplomatic arrangements facilitating these transfers.