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The administration of United States President Donald Trump took a new step in its immigration policy by signing an executive order seeking to curb birth tourism, a practice through which foreign nationals travel to the United States for the purpose of having their children born on U.S. soil and obtaining citizenship by birth.
The measure, under the name “Ending Birth Tourism,” empowers immigration and consular authorities to deny visas, refuse entry into the country, and even impose permanent entry bans on those identified as participants in this practice.
¿Qué busca la nueva orden ejecutiva?
The White House believes that U.S. citizenship should not be obtained through the "misuse of temporary visas."
In the order, Trump maintains that citizenship is “one of the greatest legacies a Nation can bestow” and asserts that it should not become “a commodity that can be acquired through calculated exploitation and the evasion of immigration laws.”
The U.S. government argues that there are networks and companies dedicated to promoting travel by pregnant women to the United States through advertising and promises related to the citizenship of children born in the country. According to the administration, some of these organizations also instruct their clients to hide the true purpose of their visit from immigration officials.
¿Qué es el turismo de maternidad?
The order defines birth tourism as the entry of a foreign national into the United States on a non-immigrant visa, such as a tourist visa, with the specific goal of giving birth on U.S. soil.
It also includes any attempt to facilitate or promote the arrival of foreign nationals for that same purpose.
The White House considers this practice an abuse of immigration categories created for temporary activities, such as tourism, studies, or cultural exchanges.
Negación de visas y castigos más severos
One of the most relevant points of the decree is that it instructs the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security to strengthen measures to detect and punish these types of cases.
Among the actions contemplated are:
Denying visas or travel authorizations to those intending to enter the country to give birth.
Preventing the entry of people suspected of participating in birth tourism.
Revoking previously granted visas.
Expelling foreign nationals who have participated in this practice.
Acting against companies, organizations, or individuals that facilitate these trips.
The provision also opens the door to one of the most drastic sanctions: a permanent ban on entry.
The document states that authorities may “revoke the visa or travel authorization and permanently prohibit entry” to any foreign national who enters or attempts to enter the United States for the purpose of participating in birth tourism.
El argumento del gobierno de Trump
The administration maintains that birth tourism affects the integrity of the U.S. immigration system.
According to the executive order, this practice allows foreign nationals to use temporary admissions to obtain permanent immigration benefits, in addition to consuming consular and border control resources that should be allocated to legitimate applicants.
The government also claims that the activity weakens public confidence in the enforcement of immigration laws and may affect efforts related to national security.
Therefore, "the official policy will be to ensure that non-immigrant visas are used solely for the purposes for which they were created and to prevent them from being used as an indirect path to obtain permanent immigration benefits."
¿Habrá excepciones?
Yes. The order establishes that the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security may grant exemptions in certain cases.
These exceptions may be applied for humanitarian reasons or when authorities determine that the entry of a foreign national serves a national interest for the United States.
However, the decision will remain at the discretion of the competent federal authorities.
The signing of this executive order adds to Trump's efforts to tighten immigration controls and limit what his administration considers legal loopholes within the visa system.
Although the document does not directly modify the constitutional principle of birthright citizenship, it does seek to prevent foreign nationals from traveling to the country with that specific objective, through increased scrutiny at consulates and points of entry.
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