Funds from migrants sent back home help fuel some towns' economies. A GOP plan targets that
- In 2023, House Republicans introduced a provision in a major bill that would impose a 5% tax on money sent abroad by more than 40 million noncitizens, including those with green cards and various work visas.
- The tax aims to reduce illegal immigration and cartel funding by penalizing illicit financial flows, following a similar Oklahoma tax passed in 2009.
- Remittances, totaling $656 billion globally in 2023 and $63.3 billion from Mexican migrants alone, sustain poorer towns like Cajolá, Guatemala, supporting families and local businesses.
- Experts and local leaders warn that taxing or restricting remittances could harm receiving communities, increase migration pressures, and negatively impact U.S. National interests.
- The proposed measures face criticism for risking economic damage both abroad and in the U.S., prompting calls for reconsideration from Mexican officials and migration experts.
61 Articles
61 Articles

Funds migrants send home help fuel some towns' economies. A GOP plan targets that
Some critics says limiting or taxing remittances could damage communities that rely on them, prove burdensome to American citizens and end up causing even more illegal migration.
Returning migrants' funds help boost the economies of some localities
The entire life of Israel Vail in the small town of Cajolá, in western Guatemala, is built thanks to the money that its three children send home from the United States. The money of their construction work paid for the two-story white house where Vail now lives, and where his children, who are without permission in the United States, would also reside if they were ever deported. Vail, 53, invested part of the money in opening a local grocery sto…
Mexican migrants in US send less money home: new blow to economy
Gray streets, concrete poles and dust falling after an excavator has sunk its teeth into a mountain of gravel. A stone's throw from the central square of Tultepec, a grimy town an hour's drive from Mexico City, construction is booming. They are Zabdiel Dominguez's neighbors, who are having an extra room added to their house thanks to money from family in the US. Few in Tultepec can afford such a luxury: the Mexican economy is already struggling …
Funds from migrants sent back home help fuel some towns’ economies. A GOP plan targets that.
WASHINGTON — Israel Vail’s entire life in the small western Guatemalan town of Cajolá is built off the money that his three children send home from the United States. The money from their construction jobs paid for the two-story white home where Vail now lives — and where his children, who are in the U.S. illegally, would also reside if they ever get deported. Vail, 53, invested some of the money in opening a local food shop, which he uses to ke…

Funds from migrants sent back home help fuel some towns' economies. A GOP plan targets that
House Republicans have included in President Donald Trump's big priority bill a 5% excise tax on some of the funds sent by migrant workers back to their home countries.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 82% of the sources are Center
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
Ownership
To view ownership data please Upgrade to Vantage