July 10 (UPI) — The United States has announced it will ban the entry of executives of travel agencies and tour operators that provide services to bring illegal immigrants into the United States, as the Biden administration expands a program announced late last year to punish those who aid and profit from illegal immigration.
“Today, the United States expanded its restrictive visa policies to target travel executives and tour operators who exploit vulnerable migrants and facilitate illegal immigration. Anyone seeking travel to the United States should use safe, legal routes,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said on Tuesday.
“No one should profit from immigration.”
The State Department first announced its visa restriction policy in November, targeting airline executives who were charging exorbitant fees to fly migrants from Nicaragua to the United States.
The government then announced in February that it would replace the original program by banning the entry of executives of land and sea transport companies, as well as charter airline executives, and Tuesday’s move marks a further expansion of punitive measures.
Illegal immigration has dogged President Joe Biden throughout his term, and his administration initially announced several policies, including restrictive visa policies, amid a surge in clashes at the southern border.
Those measures have since led to a decline in encounters, with about 170,700 encounters in May, the lowest number for a month in three years, according to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The Department of Homeland Security said late last month that illegal border crossings had fallen 40% over the previous three weeks since President Biden issued an order in early June restricting migrants seeking asylum.
The State Department has used its disciplinary powers under its visa restriction policy, most recently blacklisting an unnamed executive of a charter airline in mid-June.
