Border Czar Tom Homan didn't mince words on Fox News this week.
Appearing on “The Story with Martha MacCallum,” Homan said federal officials believe 25,000 to 30,000 birth tourism cases happen every year in the United States.
That's not his top worry, though.
Homan flagged national security as the real danger. He named Russia and China as two of the biggest countries exploiting the practice.
The clip, posted by the White House's official Rapid Response account, has already pulled in roughly 150,000 views.
.@RealTomHoman on the Trump Administration's birth tourism crackdown: “We know of about 25,000 to 30,000 per YEAR that are occurring… What concerns me the most is the national security issue because two of the biggest abusers of this process are Russia and China.” pic.twitter.com/aMy9Ado9V3
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 1, 2026
Homan's point is simple. Foreign nationals fly in, give birth, and their kids walk away with automatic U.S. citizenship.
Some of those kids grow up overseas, in adversarial nations, then return decades later with full citizenship rights intact.
That's the scenario keeping people like Homan up at night.
What Birth Tourism Actually Looks Like
Birth tourism isn't a fringe conspiracy theory. It's a documented industry. Foreign nationals travel to the U.S. on B-1/B-2 visitor visas specifically to give birth here.
Organized operations have run so-called “maternity hotels.” Packages have included housing, medical coordination, and coaching on how to answer visa interview questions without raising red flags.
Prices for these packages have ranged from $20,000 to $100,000.
Federal cases going back to 2019 have targeted Southern California operators serving Chinese clients. Similar networks have popped up serving Russian clients around Miami.
The Administration Is Moving
This isn't just talk.
In June 2026, the Supreme Court rejected a broader push to end birthright citizenship for children of non-citizens and non-permanent residents. The White House responded with a narrower approach.
On August 6, 2026, President Trump signed Executive Order 14419, “Ending Birth Tourism.”
The order directs the State Department and Homeland Security to treat entry for the purpose of giving birth as visa abuse.
It opens the door to visa denials, revocations, entry bars, and removals for people who've engaged in the practice. It also targets the facilitators running these operations.
Humanitarian exceptions remain on the table.
The State Department stood up a Birth Tourism Prevention Task Force to carry this out. By late August, the task force had already revoked more than 750 visas tied to suspected birth tourism activity.
Investigators have identified networks stretching well beyond China and Russia, including operations in Europe and West Africa.
How Big Is the Problem, Really?
Here's where it gets murky. The federal government doesn't keep an official count.
The Center for Immigration Studies, which favors tighter immigration enforcement, estimates 20,000 to 26,000 cases per year, based on older census and birth record comparisons.
That range lines up closely with Homan's 25,000 to 30,000 figure.
Whatever the exact number, both sides agree birth tourism is real and organized. The dispute is over scale and intent.
Is this a modest niche practice, or a growing exploit with serious national security implications?
Homan clearly believes the latter. And with Executive Order 14419 now in force and hundreds of visas already revoked, the administration isn't waiting around for the debate to settle before acting.
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