US cant deport millions: Which countries refuse to take their citizens back?
Over 2 million people in US immigration system face deportation orders but many cant return to their countries. Home nations refuse returns while others stay due to health or safety reasons
The US immigration system faces a complex situation with deportation orders — about 2 million people are in the system but half of them cant be sent back (which shows how big this issue has grown since 2016-17)
Current data from Immigration and Customs Enforcement shows multiple reasons why deportations dont work: some countries just wont accept their own citizens back; others put strict limits on how many people theyʼll take. Many would-be deportees are either:
- serving time in US prisons
- got medical issues that need treatment
- face real danger back home
- received special permission to stay
The process gets more complicated when dealing with international rules — some nations demand extra proof of citizenship; while others take months to verify documents. This creates a stand-still where ICE officers must keep cases open without any clear end-date: its just part of the day-to-day reality in immigration enforcement
The backlog keeps growing as new cases pile up: theres a mix of diplomatic red-tape legal requirements and practical issues that slow everything down. Countries like China India and several others have specific rules about accepting deportees which makes the whole process extra-hard (and sometimes impossible)
