By Bryan Manabat
[email protected]
Variety News Staff
THIRTY‑FOUR U.S. House Republicans are urging the secretaries of Homeland Security, State, and the Interior to shut down federal entry programs that allow Chinese nationals to visit the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands without visas, arguing that the programs have fueled large‑scale birth tourism and created national security risks.
Their letter echoes concerns raised in January by three U.S. Republican senators, who similarly pressed the administration to restrict Chinese travel to the CNMI. It also mirrors a bipartisan effort last year by members of both the House and Senate, citing birth‑tourism cases and human‑smuggling prosecutions as evidence that visa‑free programs were being exploited.
In their March 9 letter, the House members said immigration parole and visa‑waiver programs dating back to 2009 — expanded under a 2024 Biden administration rule — enabled thousands of Chinese mothers to give birth in Saipan to secure U.S. citizenship for their children. They cited reports estimating that more than 3,300 babies have been born in the CNMI to Chinese nationals since 2009, with annual births rising from fewer than 10 to nearly 600 at the peak.
The lawmakers warned that many of these U.S.-born children were raised in China and could reach voting age by 2030, a scenario they said could allow a “hostile nation” to influence American elections. They requested federal agencies disclose how many children born to Chinese nationals in the CNMI and the mainland United States returned to China, are registered to vote, or have ties to the Chinese Communist Party. They also requested data on how many Chinese nationals entered the CNMI under each parole or visa‑waiver program, including the Economic Vitality & Security Travel Authorization Program, or EVS‑TAP.
Misunderstood
Delegate Kimberlyn King‑Hinds pushed back on the lawmakers’ characterization of the islands’ immigration landscape, saying the letter shows how easily the territory’s circumstances can be misunderstood in Washington.
King‑Hinds addressed the issue publicly Wednesday at the Saipan Chamber of Commerce’s Economic Forum, where government and business leaders gathered to discuss the territory’s recovery and long-term economic strategy.
“The CNMI is a proud American community on the front lines of the Indo‑Pacific,” she said. “Our tourism‑driven economy depends on responsible access to international visitors, and programs such as EVS‑TAP are essential to ensuring that our islands remain economically viable while maintaining appropriate security safeguards.”
She noted that during her first year in Congress, she has seen how long it takes to educate all 435 House members about the CNMI’s unique circumstances. Lawmakers who take the time to learn about the islands’ realities, she said, understand the importance of maintaining access to diverse tourism markets.
“For the CNMI, access to diverse tourism markets is essential for our very survival,” King‑Hinds said. “The core issue is not just one program or one market, but ensuring the CNMI has every available tool to rebuild and sustain its economy.”
She added that if federal policies restrict the islands’ economic options, the federal government must be prepared to provide the resources necessary to sustain the community — an outcome she hopes to avoid.
“I will continue working with my colleagues and federal partners to ensure policies affecting the CNMI reflect our realities and support both the economic vitality of our islands and America’s long-term presence in the Indo-Pacific,” she said.
King‑Hinds earlier noted that “millions of Chinese nationals travel to the mainland United States each year under existing visa authorities, and foreign births nationwide far exceed those occurring in the CNMI. Any assessment of risk should be grounded in current data and an accurate understanding of local conditions.”
Background
EVS‑TAP originated from Section 902 consultations between the Trump administration and the CNMI government in 2019. The program includes:
• Automated pre-departure screening.
• A 14-day limit and mandatory return tickets to reduce overstay risk.
• Biometric and electronic tracking of arrivals and departures.
• Replacement of discretionary parole with a codified, rule-based framework.
China used to be the CNMI’s second-largest tourism market, with 233,986 arrivals at its peak in 2017. Since the pandemic, and with no direct flights from mainland China, arrivals have plummeted. After Hong Kong Airlines resumed twice-weekly direct flights in December 2025, 1,423 Chinese visitors arrived in the CNMI.
The U.S. House Republicans who signed the March 9 letter are Chip Roy of Texas; Tom Tiffany, Wisconsin; Eli Crane, Arizona; Scott Perry, Pennsylvania; Andy Ogles, Tennessee; Barry Moore, Alabama; Byron Donalds, Florida; Randy Fine, Florida; Mary E. Miller, Illinois; Ben Cline, Virginia; Ralph Norman, South Carolina; Russell Fry, South Carolina; Nancy Mace, South Carolina; Lance Gooden, Texas; Paul A. Gosar, Arizona; Harriet M. Hageman, Wyoming; Michael Cloud, Texas; Warren Davidson, Ohio; Elise Stefanik, New York; Anna Paulina Luna, Florida; Pat Harrigan, North Carolina; Julie Fedorchak, North Dakota; Andy Biggs, Arizona; Andrew S. Clyde, Georgia; Clay Higgins, Louisiana; Ronny L. Jackson, Texas; Riley M. Moore, West Virginia; Brian Babin, Texas; Andy Harris, Maryland; Keith Self, Texas; Wesley Hunt, Texas; Mike Haridopolos, Florida; Mark E. Harris, North Carolina; and Josh Brecheen, Oklahoma.
A copy of their letter is available at chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://roy.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/roy-evo.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/reps-roy-tiffany-re-birth-tourism_cnmi_vwp_letter.pdf
Bryan Manabat was a liberal arts student of Northern Marianas College where he also studied criminal justice. He is the recipient of the NMI Humanities Award as an Outstanding Teacher (Non-Classroom) in 2013, and has worked for the CNMI Motheread/Fatheread Literacy Program as lead facilitator.
