The United States has deported 25,447 migrants to third countries under agreements reached by the Donald Trump administration, an investigation by Forbidden Stories and a consortium of international journalists has found. The arrangements cover 35 countries and involve $410 million in planned payments to foreign governments and UN agencies.

Since Trump returned to office in January 2025, Washington has negotiated deals with developing countries to receive migrants who cannot legally be sent back to their countries of origin. Many of those deported have no ties to the countries receiving them. The arrangements are facing legal action over deportee rights.

The investigation found that the US had transferred 25,447 people to third countries by August 31, 2026. Mexico received the largest number, with about 20,000 deportees. The remaining migrants were sent to 27 countries across Latin America, Africa and the Pacific. Agreements with seven more countries have also been finalised.

The terms of the deals vary. They set different limits on nationalities that can be transferred and differ on whether countries will accept migrants with criminal records.

An AFP investigation earlier this year found that Washington had used visa bans and other restrictions against African countries to push them into accepting deportees. Lawyers said migrants were being placed in a “legal black hole”, with some detained without charge in countries where they had no connections and limited legal rights.

As per an investigation, a little-known division created by the State Department’s Office of Remigration in May 2025 handled payments and negotiations. Christian Jove Ehrhardt, a 41-year-old diplomat who previously worked as a security officer, headed the division.

Forbidden Stories tracked Ehrhardt’s visits to Cameroon, which signed a memorandum of understanding with the US in December to accept deportees. A week later, Cameroon signed a five-year health assistance programme worth nearly $400 million.

The following month, the State Department announced another $30 million for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Cameroon. The funding was meant to “facilitate the voluntary return of refugees and combat illegal immigration.” The first flight carrying deportees arrived in Cameroon on January 14.

Several agreements also provide direct payments to governments. Palau, a Pacific island nation with fewer than 18,000 people, agreed in December 2025 to accept up to 75 third-country nationals in return for $7.5 million. Only three people have so far been transferred there.

Since July 2025, Eswatini has received 32 people under a deal allowing up to 160 deportees. The arrangement is worth more than $5 million. The investigation found that Eswatini had accepted people with criminal records.

State Department records reviewed by investigators showed that $81 million of the $410 million allocated for the agreements was intended for signatory governments. More than $178 million was earmarked for the UN’s International Organisation for Migration (IOM), while $123 million was allocated to UNHCR.

UN agencies have faced criticism over their involvement. UNHCR told Forbidden Stories that it was not a party to the bilateral agreements and that US funding is in accordance with its mandate to strengthen asylum systems.

An IOM spokesperson said the agency assessed funding decisions based on whether its involvement would benefit affected migrants. The spokesperson told Forbidden Stories that the agency’s decisions to accept funding rested “on a single question: whether our engagement will improve the lives of the migrants affected. In these instances, we believe strongly it does.”