Stories continue to be shared that those trying to visit the U.S. B visa visitors are being subjected to a long lookback into their history of entries to the U.S. when a son or daughter was born in the U.S. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers are rumored to be asking questions of parents presenting B visitor visas for admission to the U.S. about previous visitor entries resulting in the birth of a child in the U.S. based on the enforcement of Executive Order 14419 ending Birth Tourism (EO 14419).[1]
EO 14419 is dated August 6, 2026, and was published in the Federal Register on August 11, 2026. In some cases, the result of such inquiries is the cancellation of the visa for fraud. Of course, the EO also applies to those foreign nationals applying for nonimmigrant visas at U.S. consular posts abroad. In addition, the EO may facilitate actions against entities, organizations, or individuals within or outside the U.S. that facilitate or enable birth tourism.
The EO defines the term “birth tourism” as, “ (a) the entry of any foreign national into the United States via a nonimmigrant visa for the purpose of giving birth on American soil; or (b) any effort by any foreign national to facilitate the entry of any foreign national into the United States via a nonimmigrant visa for the purpose of giving birth on American soil.”
The EO applies retroactively and prospectively to those who engage(d) in birth tourism with no limit to the scope of the retroactive review. It does not withhold recognition of citizenship already acquired via birth in the U.S. Exemptions are available for foreign nationals whose actions are taken due to humanitarian grounds or when their entry is in the national interest of the U.S.
Examples of Enforcement
On August 12, 2026, the Department of State (DOS) (Office of the Spokesperson) announced it established a “Birth Tourism Prevention Task Force” to carry out EO 14419, working with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In its published Fact Sheet regarding the Task Force, it notes that the Task Force, “reviews the activities of visa holders worldwide to identify instances of birth tourism, take action to revoke visas of those who engage in or facilitate it, and dismantle the networks that profit from this abuse.”[2] It announced that Task Force had already revoked 600 visas of foreign nationals related to birth tourism abuse pursuant to the EO.
The examples provided of birth tourism fraud in the Fact Sheet are:
- Foreigners who willfully misrepresent the purpose of their travel or entry into the United States may be permanently ineligible for a U.S. visa or entry to the United States.
- The Department has uncovered patterns that illustrate the lengths some applicants will go to circumvent our laws in order to secure U.S. citizenship for their children – and potentially for themselves in the future.
- One couple used a conference and a vacation trip to go shopping as cover stories to give birth to two children in the United States, lying about their travel purpose in two separate visa applications. On the second occasion, the couple concealed that they had a child. The visas have been revoked.
- In another case, a foreign government official requested a visa to travel on behalf of her government for just one week but instead stayed three months and gave birth in the United States before departing. The Department revoked the visa.
- Another traveler applied for a visa to go on vacation in Orlando and instead traveled to Los Angeles and gave birth five days after arrival. The Department revoked the visa.
Some of the news related to enforcement efforts include:
- In Europe, a U.S. embassy identified more than four hundred suspected birth tourism cases since 2024. Investigators traced them to at least six companies that coached applicants on what to say in their visa interview, arranged U.S. housing, and set up delivery plans.
- One U.S. embassy in North Africa revoked over one hundred visas for “birth tourist” parents who came to the United States primarily to give birth so their children would get U.S. citizenship.[3]
- At the state level, Texas Gov. Abbott also signed an Executive Order authorizing state agencies to investigate birth tourism schemes within Texas’ healthcare industry and to take enforcement actions against any licensed or regulated individual or entity advertising, soliciting, assisting, or providing unlawful birth tourism schemes.[4]
- Chinese nationals no longer will be allowed to travel to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) visa-free due to concerns in part related to birth tourism.[5]
Historical Points
Before the EO, the Department of State (DOS) published a revised provision of the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) in April of 2024 regarding the assessment of a B visitor visa applicant related to birth tourism. 9 FAM 402.2-4(A)(8) states:
“Visiting temporarily for pleasure does not include travel for the primary purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship for a child by giving birth in the United States. Any B NIV applicant who you have reason to believe will give birth during their stay in the United States is presumed to be traveling for the primary purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship for the child.”
This section contains the following important points of note:
- Rebuttable presumption. The applicant “can overcome this presumption” by establishing “a different and permissible primary purpose of travel” — e.g., a “medically complicated pregnancy” needing “specialized medical care … not available in or near” the home country or visiting “a dying family member.”
- What does not rebut it? “The fact that an applicant has an arranged birth plan with a doctor or medical facility in the United States or simply expresses a preference to give birth in the United States … is not sufficient to rebut the presumption;” a key factor is “whether the applicant has access to reasonable medical care in or near the country where the applicant resides.”
- Citizenship carve-out. “If a child would acquire U.S. citizenship at birth if born outside the United States, the presumption does not apply.”
- Consular safeguards. Officers “must not ask a visa applicant whether they are pregnant unless [they] have a specific articulable reason,” “must not, as a matter of course, ask all female applicants … whether they are pregnant,” “may not require B NIV applicants to provide evidence that they are not pregnant,” and must assess “only the applicant’s current purpose of travel,” not a future possibility of pregnancy.
- Accompanying applicants. A companion whose “primary purpose of travel is to assist or accompany another visa applicant” who does not qualify may face “doubt on their credibility,” cross-referencing INA 214(b).
What about the assessment of intent at entry by CBP officers at ports of entry regarding birth tourism?
In the past, CBP would follow a similar approach to the one outlined in the FAM provision noted. Recently, in a national liaison meeting with representatives of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) on October 23, 2026, CBP officials confirmed that they have received no new guidance related to the implementation of EO 14419. They noted that they would continue to review the issue when presented via an assessment of the “totality of the circumstances, including economic solvency and need for specialized medical care.” In addition, they confirmed that they were aware of DOS revoking issued visas based on their internal review.
How to prepare for admission to the U.S. in the future as a nonimmigrant?
For those planning to enter the U.S. under nonimmigrant categories other than as a B visitor, it is not clear that the EO only applies to B nonimmigrant visas. So, preparing to address questions regarding your primary purpose of entry to the U.S. is still relevant and important, especially while pregnant in particular in addition as to prior admissions to the U.S. after which a child was born in the U.S.
Based on experiences reported to date and the guidance noted in the FAM, consider the following preparatory actions:
- Be prepared to explain as to a current and prior requests for admission the primary purpose for the request(s). Note to expect the possibility of such questions from CBP when obviously pregnant or traveling with your U.S. citizen child.
- Be able to address special medical needs regarding gynecological or obstetric care in the U.S.
- As for most nonimmigrant visitors, be able to document your residence, employment, and ties to your home country to prove your nonimmigrant intent.
- If seeking specialized medical care, be able to document insurance coverage and/or payment arrangements for medical care.
- If seeking or used specialized medical care in the U.S. in the past, be able to document such care via sworn statements from the medical provider, invoices, and/or medical care information from the provider.
Related Services:
About the Author:
Kathleen Campbell Walker is a Member of Dickinson Wright and Chair of the firm’s Immigration Practice Group, based in the El Paso and Denver offices. She is board certified in Immigration and Nationality Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. A former national president and general counsel of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), she received the AILA Founder’s Award (now the Robert E. Juceam Award) in 2014, recognizing the individual or entity with the most significant impact on immigration law or policy during the preceding period. She has also testified multiple times before Congress on immigration and border security matters. She can be reached at KWalker@dickinsonwright.com.
[1] Kocherga, Angela, Trump administration’s new visa task force worries families in border cities, (October 26, 2026) NPR. “In a statement to NPR the State Department said it has revoked thousands of visas including those of border parents. But the agency did not give a specific overall number, or say how many were on the border, or whether there is now a policy to question Mexican visitors about why their children were born in the United States.”
[2] See. State Department Establishes Task Force to End Birth Tourism Fact Sheet (August 12, 2026) https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesman/2026/08/state-department-establishes-task-force-to-end-birth-tourism .
[3] See Trump Administration Dismantles Global Birth Tourism Networks published by U.S. Mission China on June 12, 2026, https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/trump-administration-dismantles-global-birth-tourism-ne. tworks/ before the issuance of EO 14419.
[4] See Executive Order No. GA-57 relating to unlawful birth tourism schemes in Texas. The EO references investigations as to Texas hospitals offering “birth packages” as well as a Houton-area facility that claims to have facilitated birth tourism for 1,000 plus foreign national and to have coached customers to mislead or deceive federal immigration officials as to the purpose of their visits to the U.S. The Governor’s order requires the Texas Department of State Health Services, Health and Human Services Commission, Office of the Inspector General, Texas Medical Board, Texas Board of Nursing, and the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation to investigate claims of birth tourism schemes in Texas’ healthcare industry with the authority to revoke operational state licenses and deny state benefits/contractshttps://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-issues-executive-order-cracking-down-on-birth-tourism-schemes .
[5] Trump Administration Suspends Birth Tourism Loophole Threatening National Security (October 29, 2026) https://www.dhs.gov/news/2026/10/29/trump-administration-suspends-birth-tourism-loophole-threatening-national-security .
This memo does not constitute legal advice and should not be considered as legal counsel.