Trump’s deportation flights cost taxpayers $133K per person, report finds

Democrats release first report on deportation deals

Senate Democrats say the Trump administration spent more than $40 million to deport about 300 migrants to countries they have no ties to.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s Democratic staff released a 30-page report on Feb. 13 examining these third-country deportation deals.

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen led the review, which took 10 months and drew on agreements, staff travel, and interviews with U.S. and foreign officials, attorneys, and deportees. No Republican committee members signed the report.

Five countries split over $32 million

The report found the administration made more than $32 million in direct payments to five governments: Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, El Salvador, Eswatini, and Palau.

On top of that, deportation flights, often on military aircraft, cost an estimated $7.2 million. Those five countries took in roughly 300 migrants total.

In some cases, the money went out before any deportees even arrived. The report puts total costs through January 2026 at more than $40 million.

Some deals cost over $1 million per person

Rwanda received about $7.5 million and accepted just seven people, which pushes costs above $1 million per person once flights are factored in.

Palau also got $7.5 million but had not accepted a single deportee as of January 2026. Equatorial Guinea took 29 deportees for $7.5 million, and Eswatini accepted 15 for about $5.1 million.

El Salvador received roughly $4.76 million for about 250 deportees, most of them Venezuelan nationals.

Report says most deportees ended up back home

More than 80% of migrants sent to third countries had already returned or were heading back to their home countries as of January 2026, according to the report.

In some cases, the U.S. paid to fly someone to a third country and then paid again to fly them home.

The report argues many of these people could have gone directly to their home countries in the first place, saving taxpayers money on both ends.

Two cases show the U.S. paid twice

The report highlights cases where the government spent heavily only to reverse course.

A Mexican national flew more than 8,000 miles to South Sudan at an estimated cost of $91,000 per person, with a stop at a U.S. military base in Djibouti. Weeks later, he returned to Mexico.

A Jamaican man with a deportation order to Jamaica went to Eswatini instead at a cost above $181,000 and later flew back to Jamaica. Jamaican officials said they had not refused to take him back.

Report raises questions about spending oversight

The State Department is not tracking how foreign governments use the payments, according to the report.

Funds went directly to governments rather than through outside partners, and no auditors are monitoring the spending.

In at least one country, U.S. officials told committee staff the administration told them not to follow up on how deportees were treated.

Equatorial Guinea, which received $7.5 million, ranks 172 out of 182 countries on Transparency International’s corruption index.

Administration stands behind the deportation deals

The Trump administration defended the practice. State Department deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott said the report only highlighted the administration’s enforcement work.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) called third-country agreements “essential to the safety of the homeland and the American people.” DHS also said the agreements follow due process under the Constitution.

The administration has argued these deportations are necessary when migrants’ home countries refuse to accept them.

Rubio defended the practice at a Senate hearing

Secretary of State Marco Rubio backed third-country deportations at a Senate hearing in January 2026. Rubio said the government arrested and deported gang members and does not want them in the country.

The State Department handles negotiations to set up these agreements with foreign governments.

The hearing came weeks before the Democratic report’s release and gave the administration a chance to make its case publicly.

Deals now stretch to over 20 countries

What started as a rare tool has become routine, according to the report.

The administration now has agreements with or has sent deportees to more than 20 countries and is working on deals with dozens more.

As of January 2026, the report counts 15 finished agreements and 10 more at or near completion. The report says the administration has used threats of tariffs and aid cuts to push countries into accepting deportees.

Some countries sent wishlists after signing deals

The report raises questions about what countries expect in return for taking deportees.

After South Sudan reached an agreement, it sent Washington a list of requests that included help prosecuting an opposition leader and sanctions relief for an official accused of diverting more than $1 billion in public funds.

Sen. Shaheen questioned the $7.5 million payment to Equatorial Guinea, noting it came as the administration built ties with the country’s vice president.

That payment tops all U.S. foreign aid to the country over the previous eight years combined.

Court ordered return of CECOT deportees

One day before the report dropped, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ordered the administration to bring back Venezuelan men sent to El Salvador’s CECOT prison under the Alien Enemies Act in March 2025.

The ruling covers 137 Venezuelans deported despite an emergency court order blocking their removal. The men later went to Venezuela as part of a prisoner exchange.

DHS said the removals followed proper legal authorities. This ruling is separate from the broader deportation deals in the report.

Democrats call for more transparency going forward

The report covers findings through January 2026, and deportation operations continue. Democrats called for stronger oversight and transparency around the agreements.

The report describes the system as an expensive form of what it calls shadow diplomacy.

No Republican members of the committee signed the report, making it a Democratic minority product rather than a bipartisan finding. The administration’s deportation network keeps growing as new deals take shape.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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