The Trump administration is working on a “Safe Third Country” asylum agreement with El Salvador, allowing the U.S. to deport non-Salvadoran migrants there, blocking them from seeking asylum in the U.S. Instead, deported migrants would be instructed to request asylum in El Salvador, designated as a “safe third country.”

This plan revives an unimplemented agreement from Trump’s first term, terminated by President Biden. It would enable deportation of migrants from countries like Venezuela, including suspected members of the Tren de Aragua gang, which Trump is seeking to designate as a terrorist group. El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, known for his mass incarceration crackdown on gangs like MS-13, is expected to be a key ally.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to visit El Salvador as part of a Latin America tour. The Trump administration has ramped up immigration enforcement, using military planes for deportations, deploying additional troops to the southern border, and reinstating the Remain-in-Mexico policy requiring asylum seekers to stay outside the U.S. while their cases are reviewed.

If finalized, the El Salvador agreement would add to Trump’s aggressive border control measures, complementing broader changes that have effectively shut down access to the asylum system.