US revokes 600+ visas in fresh crackdown on birth tourism
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The United States has revoked more than 600 visas held by foreign nationals as part of a new campaign targeting birth tourism, the State Department said on Wednesday.
The department said it had set up a Birth Tourism Prevention Task Force to identify visa holders who travelled to the US to give birth, as well as individuals and networks facilitating such travel.
The task force reviews visa holders’ activities and travel histories worldwide and analyses information held by the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies. Its work focuses on identifying birth tourism, revoking visas and dismantling networks that profit from the practice.
The State Department said the task force had revoked more than 600 visas of foreign nationals across the world as part of efforts to prevent what it described as abuse of the US immigration system.
The department said visas are generally revoked when there are indications that a holder may be ineligible. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has broad discretionary authority to revoke visas, it added.
The action follows an executive order issued by President Donald Trump on August 6. The order defines birth tourism as entering the US on a non-immigrant visa with the purpose of giving birth on American soil, and also covers attempts to facilitate such travel.
Under the order, the secretaries of state and homeland security are authorised to prevent entry, deny or revoke visas, remove travellers and permanently bar individuals found to have engaged in birth tourism. Humanitarian and national-interest exemptions may be granted.
The State Department said facilitators had developed birth tourism into a lucrative business. Some advertise their services as doulas, midwives or wellness advocates while offering assistance with US births, visa coaching and hospital arrangements.
According to the department, some operators forge medical documents or coach clients to conceal their actual purpose of travel and avoid paying hospital bills. It said online advertisements promote birth tourism by promising “automatic citizenship” and “a future without borders”.
The department also cited several cases identified by US consular officers.
In one case, a couple used a conference and shopping trip as cover for travelling to the US to give birth to two children. They provided false information about their purpose of travel in two separate visa applications and concealed the existence of one child during the second application. Their visas were revoked.
In another case, a foreign government official applied for a visa for a one-week official visit but remained in the US for three months and gave birth before leaving. Her visa was revoked.
In a third case, a traveller said she intended to holiday in Orlando but instead travelled to Los Angeles and gave birth five days after arriving in the US. Her visa was also revoked.
The 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified in 1868, states that people born or naturalised in the United States and subject to its jurisdiction are US citizens. The provision has long provided the constitutional basis for birthright citizenship.
With IANS inputs