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Trump Administration Intensifies Nationwide Review of Migrant Children and Sponsors

New vetting measures, FBI welfare checks, and deportations are part of efforts to locate and safeguard 450,000 unaccompanied minors placed during the Biden administration.

FILE - Women and children migrants walk with a larger group of migrants through Tapachula, Chiapas state, Mexico, in an attempt to reach the U.S. border, Jan. 20, 2025, the inauguration day of U.S. President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Edgar H. Clemente, FIle)
Advocates for migrant rights hold signs outside the South Florida office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Enforcement and Removal Operations, following a press conference with Gov. Ron DeSantis on immigration enforcement, May 1, 2025, in Miramar, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Overview

  • The Trump administration is conducting a nationwide review to track 450,000 unaccompanied migrant children placed with sponsors during the Biden administration, citing safety concerns.
  • The FBI is leading welfare checks, visiting homes of children and sponsors to ensure well-being, with over 450 cases referred to law enforcement this year.
  • Approximately 100 children have been removed from sponsors deemed unfit and returned to federal custody in the past two months.
  • New sponsor requirements, including fingerprinting, DNA testing, and income verification, aim to strengthen child protection but raise concerns about accessibility for undocumented sponsors.
  • Deportations have already occurred, including two families in Hawaii, sparking fears of family separations and broader implications for undocumented sponsors.