Democrats say Trump's foreign deportation deals cost taxpayers millions

By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's immigrant deportation agreements with foreign governments cost American taxpayers millions of dollars - at times more than $1 million per person shipped out of the country - and produce little benefit, according to a study from Senate Democrats released on Friday.

Trump aims to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally and his administration has sought to ramp up removals of immigrants to third countries that are not their country of origin.

Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said in their report that the total cost of third-country removals is unknown, but that more than $32 million has been sent directly to five countries - Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, El Salvador, Eswatini and Palau.

As of January 2026, the five countries received only about 300 third-country nationals - 250 of them Venezuelans sent to El Salvador - from the United States, the majority of whom have already been returned or are set to return to their home country, the report said.

In one example cited, a Jamaican was sent to Eswatini at a cost of more than $181,000 despite a U.S. court's finding that he should be returned to his homeland. Weeks later he was flown 7,000 miles back to Jamaica, also at U.S. expense, the report said.

The Jamaican government said it never objected to his return to his home country, according to the report.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report. The White House has said that its mass deportation program was a central campaign promise in Trump's successful 2024 campaign for reelection and that it "is freeing up resources, revitalizing opportunity and restoring safety."

The 30-page report was released by Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the foreign relations committee, and also signed by committee Democrats Chris Coons, Chris Murphy, Tim Kaine, Chris Van Hollen, Cory Booker, Tammy Duckworth and Jacky Rosen.

“This report outlines the troubling practice by the Trump Administration of deporting individuals to third countries — places where these people have no connection — at great expense to the American taxpayer and raises serious questions,” Shaheen said in a statement.

Critics say Trump's third-country deportation policy aims to stoke fear among migrants and encourage them to "self deport" to their home countries if they are in the United States and to stay home or go elsewhere if they are not.

But the administration has not provided detailed information about its plans or arrangements with third countries to accept migrants removed from the U.S. but unable to return to their home countries.

Reuters reported in January about people who are deported to their home countries despite fears of political persecution in their homelands. That included a woman from Sierra Leone first sent to Ghana and then forcibly returned to her home country from there despite a U.S. judge having granted her request to go elsewhere.

The Democrats' report said there is no evidence that the State Department is conducting follow-up oversight on the use of taxpayer funds, even with governments that have records of corruption and human rights abuses.

The report covers agreements and reported third-country removals through January 31, 2026, but said the Trump administration was expected to pursue more agreements.

"Minority Committee staff understand the State Department is pursuing third country removal agreements with 70 to 80 countries," the report said.