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United States and Antigua and Barbuda signed non-binding third-country deportation MOU

The United States and Antigua and Barbuda signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding dated December 19, 2025, allowing the U.S. to propose transferring up to 10 "noncriminal refugees" per year to the Caribbean nation. The deal only became public in January 2026, after the U.S. imposed partial visa restrictions on Antigua and Barbuda effective January 1, 2026, prompting accusations from the political opposition that the timing amounted to coercion.

Jurisdiction
Federal
Location
United States; destination Antigua and Barbuda (St. John's)

Abuses documented

Actors

On December 19, 2025, the United States and Antigua and Barbuda concluded a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding under which the U.S. proposed transferring up to 10 "noncriminal refugees" per year to the twin-island nation, as part of what Washington described as a global effort to share responsibility for refugees already in U.S. territory — an effort the government said had been extended to more than 100 countries worldwide. Prime Minister Gaston Browne's government insisted the arrangement was not a binding agreement and that Antigua and Barbuda retained "the absolute right to reject any individual proposed by the United States," with no one holding a criminal record to be accepted.

The deal was not disclosed to the Antiguan public until January 2026, after the United States had already imposed partial visa restrictions on Antiguan nationals effective January 1, 2026 — a sequence that fueled accusations from opposition leader Jamale Pringle and others that the visa measure was leverage to extract the MOU. Browne brought the matter before Parliament for debate that July, telling lawmakers the memorandum "is not a binding agreement" and "does not override the country's immigration laws or sovereign authority," while reiterating that the U.S. had approached over a hundred governments with similar proposals as part of the same push that produced parallel deals with Belize, Costa Rica, Dominica, and other Caribbean and Latin American nations.

Updates

2026-07-14 — Parliament passed resolution stating no binding agreement exists [5]

Antigua and Barbuda's Parliament passed a resolution, tabled by Prime Minister Browne after a day-long debate, stating that Parliament "has not approved any agreement with the United States and has not authorized the transfer of any individual," and that "no binding agreement exists ... since no final agreement has been signed." The resolution rejects any standing or open-ended transfer program, requiring individual government approval and written agreements covering documentation, funding, accommodation, and legal status before any transfer could occur. Foreign Affairs Minister E.P. Chet Greene separately confirmed Antigua and Barbuda had accepted five of its own nationals deported by ICE between March 2025 and June 2026 — a distinct obligation, he said, from accepting citizens of another country.

Why we recorded this

An asylum or protection process loses its integrity when the destination for a person the U.S. cannot easily remove is decided through a private diplomatic arrangement announced only after visa restrictions created pressure to sign it. The U.S. and Antigua and Barbuda concluded a Memorandum of Understanding dated December 19, 2025, disclosed weeks after Washington restricted Antiguan visas — a sequence Antigua's own opposition called coercive. Using visa leverage to secure a destination-country agreement substitutes diplomatic pressure for the individualized process due process is meant to guarantee.

Sources

  1. Gaston Browne Administration on cooperating with USA on 3rd party nationals — Government of Antigua and Barbuda (via Bajan Reporter) primary accessed July 31, 2026
  2. PM Browne Says Memorandum of Understanding With US Does Not Legally Bind Antigua and Barbuda — CARIBPULSE investigative accessed July 31, 2026
  3. Antigua and Barbuda — Third Country Deportation Watch investigative accessed July 31, 2026
  4. Memorandum of Understanding Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Antigua and Barbuda Concerning the Removal of Third Country Nationals — U.S. Department of State (Case Act non-binding instruments archive) primary accessed July 31, 2026
  5. Antigua and Barbuda Parliament Passes Resolution Setting Strict Terms for Any US Third-Country Transfer Agreement — CARIBPULSE investigative accessed July 31, 2026

See also