Trump Admin Slaps Visa Restrictions on Migrant Caravan Organizers - Newsweek

The Trump administration has imposed visa restrictions on more than 15 people accused of "organizing, facilitating, or promoting" recent migrant caravans traveling through Central America and Mexico toward the U.S. southern border.

The State Department said Thursday that investigations found that individuals had recruited, coordinated, and directed large groups of migrants making the journey. It did not disclose the names, nationalities, or locations of those targeted, or specify which caravans they were allegedly connected to.

"Any of these individuals or any caravan participants who apply for a U.S. visa or attempt to travel to our nation will face additional scrutiny, and the Department will take appropriate action, which may include refusing or revoking their visas," Tommy Pigott, a State Department spokesman, said in a statement Thursday.

The White House referred Newsweek to the Department of State's announcement when asked for further comment. Newsweek has also contacted the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection for further comment and is awaiting their responses.

The restrictions are the latest use of a visa policy announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on March 5, 2025. They target foreign government officials and others accused of knowingly facilitating illegal immigration into the United States. The policy covers immigration and customs officials, as well as airport and port authorities, accused of failing to enforce immigration laws or facilitating migrants traveling toward the U.S. southern border.

Migrant caravans have traveled north toward the United States for years and became more frequent during the border surge from 2020 through late 2024. Many do not reach the border intact, with some migrants remaining in Mexico and others detained by Mexican authorities.

A 2023 study by Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy identified 30 migrant caravans between 2017 and the end of 2022, most originating in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, or southern Mexico.

Researchers said the caravans represented a small share of overall migration, despite attracting significant political and media attention. They added that traveling in groups can offer migrants greater safety on journeys stretching hundreds of miles. The groups have ranged from hundreds to thousands of people, with many stopped or broken up before reaching the U.S.-Mexico border.

One caravan, known as "Fe y Esperanza," left San Pedro Sula, Honduras, on September 20 and traveled through Guatemala before reaching southern Mexico. More than 600 people were left in Tapachula, near Mexico’s border with Guatemala, on September 27, according to EFE.

DHS previously told Newsweek that the U.S. Border Patrol was closely monitoring the caravans' movements and any further developments.

Mexican immigration authorities intervened after the caravan reached Arriaga, Chiapas, near the Oaxaca border. Some members of the group accepted an offer to be transferred to Tuxtla Gutiérrez to complete immigration procedures. This effectively dispersed the caravan, according to Mexican newspaper La Jornada.

A second caravan left San Pedro Sula, Honduras, on October 13 and began entering Mexico in separate groups two days later, according to La Jornada. The first group, numbering about 200 people, crossed the Rodolfo Robles International Bridge from Guatemala into Suchiate, Chiapas, on October 15 and headed for Tapachula. The migrants initially called the group "Sin Fronteras."

Another contingent, composed largely of Hondurans who had also traveled from San Pedro Sula, crossed into Mexico on October 17 and joined migrants already waiting in Tapachula, said local newspaper El Orbe.

By October 18, about 400 migrants from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala were gathered in Tapachula’s Parque Bicentenario. The group delayed its planned departure while waiting for additional migrants arriving from Guatemala, El Orbe reported.

By the time the caravan left Tapachula on October 20, it had grown to more than 600 people, most of them from Central America, according to La Jornada. The group, which had been traveling under the "Sin Fronteras" name, renamed itself "Fe y Esperanza 2." This linked it to the caravan that had departed Honduras the previous month.

The group headed onto the coastal highway under the watch of state police, the National Guard and Mexico's National Migration Institute, with an intended first stop in Huehuetán, about 25 kilometers away, according to La Jornada. Associated Press separately reported that the group took Highway 200 along the Pacific route and that its members had asked the government of President Claudia Sheinbaum for transit permits that would allow them to take buses toward northern Mexico.

Their ultimate destinations varied. Some hoped to reach the United States, while others said they planned to remain in Mexico and seek work, including in Oaxaca and Monterrey.

The State Department has not said whether the latest visa restrictions are connected to either of those caravans or to other migrant movements in the region.

Pigott said the department began imposing the restrictions during the previous week. The policy can be applied to people the department believes knowingly organize, promote, support or finance caravans that facilitate illegal immigration.

The announcement does not explain how the administration defines "support" for a caravan, including whether humanitarian or legal assistance to migrants could fall within its scope.

The department also did not disclose what evidence was used to identify those targeted or whether Mexico or Central American governments assisted the investigations.

Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.