Birth Tourism in the US Could Be on Borrowed Time
Authorities in the United States are taking new steps to address birth tourism, with state legal action and a federal enforcement initiative targeting alleged facilitation networks.
Birth tourism is generally defined as travel to another country for the purpose of giving birth so that the child obtains citizenship by place of birth. The Migration Policy Institute said that up to 26,000 births in the United States each year could be linked to the practice, a small share of the estimated 3.5 million births annually.
Reuters reported last month that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had directed investigators to focus on a new "Birth Tourism Initiative" led by its Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) division, targeting networks suspected of helping pregnant foreign nationals misrepresent the purpose of travel on visa applications in order to give birth in the U.S.
"HSI is advancing efforts to protect the integrity of US immigration and identification systems, specifically targeting fraudulent activities associated with birth tourism schemes," the internal agency email reviewed by Reuters said.
The enforcement effort comes as the Trump administration barrels forward with an aggressive immigration agenda that includes attempts to restrict birthright citizenship.
In January 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order restricting automatic birthright citizenship for certain children born in the United States, triggering a series of legal challenges now before the Supreme Court. A ruling that narrows birthright citizenship could affect demand for birth tourism by limiting eligibility for citizenship based on place of birth.
The Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
One ICE official, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, told Newsweek, “Birth tourism is watering down the value of United States Citizenship. Anchor babies have the potential to reap all of the benefits of citizenship, with none of the responsibilities.”
Adam Klein, a former senior official at the Department of Homeland Security, told Newsweek, “Visa fraud-entering the U.S. through false pretenses or with false information-is a real issue, and organized criminal efforts facilitating it should absolutely be investigated and addressed.
“But there is an important distinction between targeting fraud and attacking birthright citizenship itself. The broader effort to undermine birthright citizenship-through litigation and related policies-cuts against long-settled constitutional law and the spirit of this country.
“For more than a century, the interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution has been clear: birth on U.S. soil confers citizenship. We should be careful not to let legitimate enforcement concerns become a vehicle for eroding foundational constitutional principles.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton last week filed a lawsuit against a Houston-area business accused of operating a birth tourism scheme that helped foreign nationals travel to the U.S. to give birth and secure citizenship for their children.
The lawsuit targets De'Ai Postpartum Care Center and alleges the company facilitated travel, housing, and services for pregnant women whose primary purpose was to give birth in the United States.
The state is seeking to shut down the operation and obtain financial penalties, according to the attorney general's office.
"America is for Americans, not foreigners trying to cheat the system to claim citizenship," Paxton said in a statement. "The Center's scheme not only facilitated an invasion of Texas, but it also involved shielding and facilitating violations of immigration law. Birthright citizenship is a scam that threatens national security, and I will do everything in my power to stop unlawful ‘birth tourism' schemes like this one."
An April poll by Associated Press-NORC found national support for birthright citizenship, though views were more divided among Republicans as the Supreme Court considers the legality of Trump's executive order.
The survey found that roughly two-thirds of U.S. adults support automatic citizenship for all children born in the country, while 44 percent of Republicans said they support birthright citizenship.
The poll also found that fewer than half of Americans believe children born to undocumented immigrants should automatically receive citizenship, compared with 75 percent who support citizenship for children born to parents legally in the U.S. on work visas. The survey of 2,596 adults was conducted April 16–20 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.6 percentage points.
Trump's executive order seeking to restrict birthright citizenship could have sweeping effects if ultimately upheld by the courts. According to estimates from the Migration Policy Institute, the policy would result in roughly 255,000 babies born in the United States each year not automatically receiving U.S. citizenship because their parents are either undocumented immigrants or holders of long-term temporary visas. The order is currently the subject of ongoing legal challenges and remains blocked from taking effect while the Supreme Court considers the constitutional questions surrounding birthright citizenship.
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This story was originally published May 8, 2026 at 2:00 AM.