politics
Jamaica Signs Deal to Accept Up to 25 Third-Country Deportees Every Two Weeks, Details and Pay Still Undecided
Jamaica has signed a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to accept third-country nationals for transit. The agreement is still under negotiation on housing and compensation.
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U.S. Department of Homeland Security to accept up to 25 third-country deportees every two weeks. National Security Minister Dr. Horace Chang confirmed the signing Tuesday and said the individuals would not be placed in detention.
Details on housing remain undecided and compensation is still being negotiated. Chang described the arrangement as a structured transit process rather than permanent resettlement. If completed, the agreement would place Jamaica alongside Mexico, El Salvador, Uganda and other nations that have accepted third-country migrants removed from the United States.
The Trump administration has deported more than 19,000 people to third countries, according to Third Country Deportation Watch, with most sent to Mexico and over 1,500 sent to more than 20 other nations. The Opposition People’s National Party criticized the government for conducting the talks without public disclosure.
” Chang stated that Jamaica remains obligated under international law to accept its own citizens.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Similar agreements have been reached elsewhere in the Caribbean. The Dominican Republic signed a non-binding deal to hold a limited number of non-criminal third-country nationals while barring unaccompanied minors and Haitian nationals.
Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit called a comparable arrangement a “pragmatic step” to maintain relations with Washington, provided violent offenders are excluded. Antigua and Barbuda capped total acceptances at ten non-criminal individuals. -funded framework to accept skilled migrants to address an estimated 80,000-worker shortage.
U.S. federal district court ruled the third-country removal policy unlawful in February 2026, but enforcement continues pending appeal. One documented case involved Jamaican citizen Orville Etoria, who arrived in the United States as a child in 1976.
