US announces visa restrictions on “birth tourism” networks — what it does and does not change
The State Department will restrict visas for people who engage in or facilitate birth tourism, including agents and “fixers”. Travelling to the US while pregnant is not, by itself, barred.
What was announced
On 23 September 2026 the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, announced “a new visa restriction policy under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act”. The statement says it targets “individuals who knowingly engage in, have engaged in, or facilitate birth tourism to the United States”, and names who it means: owners, operators and managers of commercial birth tourism networks, visa “fixers” who coach applicants to commit fraud, foreign medical providers who enable the practice, and others who facilitate it. “Certain family members may also be covered by these restrictions,” the statement adds.
Section 212(a)(3)(C) is the foreign-policy ground of visa ineligibility, which the State Department uses for named categories of people rather than for whole nationalities. The statement gives no numbers, names no countries and does not say from when consulates will apply it.
What it does not change
The policy is aimed at networks and facilitators, not at pregnant travellers as a group. Newsweek, reporting the announcement on 23 September, notes that travelling to the United States while pregnant is not, by itself, prohibited, and that the State Department’s visitor-visa guidance still lists medical treatment among the activities a B-2 visa allows. What was already the rule remains the rule: existing State Department guidance, Newsweek notes, says that travelling to the US primarily to give birth so that a child obtains US citizenship is not a permissible basis for a visitor visa.
What Indian travellers should do
If you are applying for a US B-1/B-2 visa, nothing in the application form or the fee has changed. Answer the interview questions truthfully about the purpose of your trip, and be wary of any agent who offers to “coach” answers or arrange a birth abroad: the new policy is written for exactly those intermediaries, and it can reach family members too. If you are travelling while pregnant for a genuine visit — family, tourism or treatment — carry documents that support that purpose. For trip planning, see the United States.
Sources
This report is based on the following published sources. Rules and schedules change — confirm with the issuing authority before you travel.
- Protecting the Sanctity of U.S. Citizenship: A New Visa Restriction Policy for Those Who Engage in or Facilitate Birth Tourism — US Department of State (press statement, Secretary of State), 23 September 2026
- Visa update: Trump admin targets birth tourism “fixers” — Newsweek (via Yahoo News), 23 September 2026
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