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Trump Administration Plans Pilot to Repatriate More Than 600 Guatemalan Children in U.S. Custody

Internal guidance focuses on Guatemalan youths in HHS care without a U.S. parent, prompting due‑process warnings.

In this March 30, 2021, file photo, young unaccompanied migrants, watch television inside a playpen at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility, the main detention center for unaccompanied children in the Rio Grande Valley, in Donna, Texas.
Federal agents patrol the halls of immigration court at the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building on August 28, in New York.
Covered structures are seen at the US Department of Health and Human Services' unaccompanied minors migrant detention facility at Carrizo Springs, Texas, on July 5, 2019.

Overview

  • CNN reports the administration has identified more than 600 Guatemalan minors in HHS custody for potential return under a pilot coordinated with Guatemala.
  • Guidance reviewed by CNN directs federal field specialists to stop releasing Guatemalan children to certain relatives and to halt sponsor approvals when no parent is in the United States.
  • Officials have discussed using voluntary departure and are referring to the removals as repatriations, though the precise legal process has not been specified.
  • Advocates warn the plan may conflict with TVPRA protections, noting many children lack attorneys and may not fully understand any decision to leave.
  • Federal data show just under 2,000 children remain in HHS custody as average stays have stretched to about 187 days under tighter vetting, welfare checks, expedited cases, and in‑custody interviews.