U.S. warns of visa sanctions if China does not accelerate repatriations, official says
Washington — The United States is prepared to impose visa sanctions and other travel restrictions on China unless Beijing steps up the repatriation of Chinese nationals in the country illegally, a senior Trump administration official said, days before President Donald Trump’s planned May 14-15 visit to Beijing.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal planning, said China had slowed its cooperation on deportations: after accepting about 3,000 deportees via charter and commercial flights in early 2025, Beijing has scaled back over the past six months.
China “refuses to fully cooperate with the United States to take back its citizens,” the official said, calling that a violation of China’s international obligations and responsibility toward its people. If China does not increase cooperation, Washington would consider requiring higher cash bonds with visa applications, denying more visas, and blocking more entries at the border.
“Inaction by the Chinese government will jeopardize future travel for law-abiding Chinese citizens,” the official said. U.S. authorities want Beijing to issue travel documents and approve Customs and Border Protection charter flights carrying deportees, paid for by the United States, to land in China.
Under Section 243(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the U.S. can place visa sanctions on countries deemed “recalcitrant” in complying with repatriation requests, a label the Department of Homeland Security has routinely applied to China. Beijing has long resisted U.S.
requests to take back tens of thousands of citizens who overstayed visas or entered the country illegally. When Trump took office, China indicated it would repatriate “confirmed Chinese nationals” following verification, while stressing the process takes time.
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Previously, Beijing has said it opposes illegal migration and regards it as an international issue that requires cooperation between countries.
The official said there are now more than 100,000 undocumented Chinese nationals in the United States; more than 30,000 have final orders of removal, and authorities have detained more than 1,500 awaiting deportation. Most in this last category have committed other crimes, the official said.
Independent estimates vary: the Migration Policy Institute said that in mid-2022 as many as 239,000 Chinese immigrants were not authorized to be in the country. The warning lands ahead of Trump’s meetings in Beijing, where he is expected to raise the deportation issue alongside other matters with President Xi Jinping.
The trip is important for Trump, who is seeking trade concessions he can present to voters ahead of November’s midterm elections that polls suggest could deliver losses for the president’s Republican Party. Since returning to the White House early last year, Trump has threatened tariffs and sanctions on countries that fail to accept deportees.
The official contrasted China’s stance with other countries that have large undocumented populations in the U.S., including India, which the official said are fully cooperating on returns. The administration has also pursued a hard-line immigration agenda that includes an aggressive deportation drive, revocations of visas and green cards, and enhanced reviews of immigrants’ social media and past speeches.
During the Biden administration, the number of Chinese nationals illegally crossing the U.S. southern border rose from negligible figures to tens of thousands, as China’s economy faced headwinds and U.S. visas were harder to obtain amid COVID-era restrictions.