Migrants from their their plane at the Guatemalan Air Force base after arriving on the last deportation flight of the year from the United States, in Guatemala City, Guatemala, on December 30, 2025. File Photo by Alex Cruz/EPA
Paraguay has rejected nine of the first 25 migrants the United States planned to send there under a bilateral agreement, while it prepares to receive the rest of the group Thursday, authorities from both countries said.
Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez Lezcano confirmed that the decision to reject the nine was based on failure to meet documentation requirements during the verification process.
“Of those 25 people, nine are not admissible because they do not meet the requirements related to documentation,” he said.
Paraguay rechaza a 9 de los 25 inmigrantes que llegarán al país mañana
El canciller Rubén Ramírez Lezcano señaló que se llegó a un acuerdo de que la movilización sería de un máximo de 25 personas por mes y recalcó la autoridad soberana de Paraguay de aceptar o no a las… pic.twitter.com/oy3YSYO3CW— Radio Ñandutí (@nanduti) April 22, 2026
Ramírez Lezcano said the agreement with the United States establishes a maximum of 25 deported people per month, and that Paraguay retains the sovereign authority to accept or reject each case after a security assessment.
The U.S. chargé d’affaires in Paraguay, Robert Alter, said the migrants do not have pending asylum claims and that the goal is to facilitate their return “in a safe and orderly manner.”
This framework allows Washington to send migrants to countries with which they do not necessarily have direct ties. Costa Rica and El Salvador have also agreed to receive U.S. deportees.
According to a report by Democratic staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, cited by Noticias Telemundo, the Trump administration has spent at least $40 million to deport around 300 migrants to third countries.
Lezcano said the migrants arrive on charter flights financed by the United States, while the costs of accommodation, food and transfer to their countries of origin are covered by the International Organization for Migration.
The initiative has drawn criticism in Paraguay’s political sphere, particularly over the lack of prior information.
Opposition Sen. Rafael Filizzola said the agreement was not reviewed or approved by Congress, and he questioned its implementation just hours before the arrival of the first group.
“If they do not qualify to remain in the United States, why would they qualify for Paraguay?” he wrote on social media platform X.
Mañana llegan a Paraguay 25 personas migrantes que fueron rechazadas por Estados Unidos, en virtud de un acuerdo que no fue analizado -como debía ser- por la Comisión Nacional de Apátridas y Refugiados (Conare) ni fue aprobado por el Congreso. Si no califican para permanecer en… pic.twitter.com/Jfur7lDSUp— Rafael Filizzola (@FilizzolaRafael) April 22, 2026
Filizzola also said the agreement was signed without consultation with the National Commission for Stateless Persons and Refugees, and he warned there is no clarity about the identity or nationality of the migrants.
In comments to UPI, ruling party Sen, Oscar Salomón criticized the lack of information and the absence of legislative debate.
“The Parliament was not consulted. We do not know who they are or why they were deported,” he said.
