Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Wednesday that the State Department has revoked more than 600 visas in a major new effort targeting organized “birth tourism” operations that exploit U.S. immigration laws.
Rubio declared on X that “American citizenship is not for sale.”
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The Trump administration is cracking down on networks that help foreign nationals travel to America specifically to give birth so their children automatically receive U.S. citizenship.
A newly created Birth Tourism Prevention Task Force has already acted against hundreds of foreign nationals worldwide in its first month.
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“Elaborate birth tourism rings are profiting off the exploitation of America’s laws, coaching foreigners to defraud the U.S. visa system, arranging travel and housing, and even forging documents, all to enable foreign nationals to obtain citizenship for their children,” Rubio said in a statement.
The push does not change the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of birthright citizenship. Instead, it focuses on fraud, visa deception, and commercial facilitators who treat American citizenship as a commodity.
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Since 2020, State Department rules have directed consular officers to deny visitor visas when the primary purpose appears to be giving birth for citizenship.
The new task force expands that approach with retrospective reviews, visa revocations, and coordination with the Department of Homeland Security.
Rubio’s background adds weight to the message.
Born in 1971 to Cuban immigrant parents who later naturalized, he has long been recognized as a natural-born citizen under the Constitution and Supreme Court precedent.
His leadership now targets the commercial abuse of that same principle by foreign profit-seeking networks.
Migration Policy Institute Associate Policy Analyst Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh told Newsweek: “Birth tourism represents a conundrum for policymakers.
Giving birth on U.S. territory is not inherently illegal, but coming to the U.S. intentionally to give birth and the actions of the companies that Rubio describes, like visa fraud, are crimes.”
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She added: “The phrase ‘birth tourist’ is used to describe someone who comes to the U.S. for the sole purpose of giving birth, resulting in U.S. citizenship for that child, a different scenario than Rubio’s birth or births in the U.S. to unauthorized parents, though all fall under the umbrella of birthright citizenship.”
Jeremy Beck, co-president of NumbersUSA, praised the focus on enforcement.
“Birth tourism undermines the integrity of birthright citizenship as asylum shopping undermines our humanitarian programs,” Beck told Newsweek.
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“Like most countries, the United States grants automatic citizenship to the U.S.-born children of American citizens and legal permanent residents. But the U.S. and Canada are the only two developed economies to extend that to the children of tourists,” Beck added.
Beck noted the challenge after a recent Supreme Court ruling affirming birthright citizenship for children of those unlawfully or temporarily present: “Since 2020, it has been U.S. policy to deny visitor visas to travelers whose primary purpose is giving birth in the United States, but the Supreme Court ruling means anyone who can successfully lie to an immigration agent must be rewarded with a U.S.-citizen child. That makes it all the more important to stop birth tourism before entry.”
He called for Congress to act: “The Obama Administration focused enforcement almost exclusively on maternity hotels like You Win that coached clients on how to commit fraud, while the Trump Administration gave more leeway to consular officers abroad in 2020 to disrupt birth tourism. The Biden Administration left that Trump policy in place. But Congress needs to codify the rules and explicitly make tourists inadmissible if their intent is to have a baby for citizenship purposes. S. 5023 by Senator Marsha Blackburn and H.R. 9919 by Representative Rich McCormick would do that.”
The State Department has not released details on specific countries or organizations targeted. Rubio made clear the effort is just getting started.
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“The State Department will use all available tools to dismantle birth tourism networks and defend the integrity of U.S. citizenship,” he said.
In an era when immigration enforcement remains a top priority, Rubio’s action sends a strong signal that American citizenship will not be treated as a product for sale by overseas operators.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
