Overview
- Investigative reports published Monday showed at least 25,447 people had been moved to third countries by Aug. 31, 2026, with roughly 20,000 sent to Mexico and the remainder dispersed across Latin America, Africa and the Pacific.
- The transfers were run largely by a State Department Office of Remigration created in May 2025 and led by diplomat Christian Jove Ehrhardt, which negotiated bilateral deals and managed payments to partners.
- Internal records reveal a $410 million plan that earmarked about $81 million for receiving governments and roughly $178 million for the IOM plus $123 million for UNHCR to help facilitate returns.
- Reporting documents direct payments to partners such as Palau for $7.5 million and large aid packages tied to agreements in countries like Cameroon and shows costly, inefficient operations including expensive charter flights and repeated moves of the same people.
- Human rights groups say deportees face a ‘legal black hole’ and risk of refoulement, and a 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling on Sept. 18, 2026 declared rapid third‑country removals unlawful, leaving the program’s future dependent on appeals and further litigation.