Chinese migrants use Ecuador and TikTok as pathways to the U.S. border, according to reports

Thousands of Chinese migrants are using Ecuador as a crucial starting point to eventually reach the United States to claim asylum, according to a report published by the Argentine news outlet Infobae. According to Infobae, many of the migrants are using the social media platform TikTok to chart their course.

Chinese migrants at the border wall between Mexico and the U.S.

Ecuador, one of only two countries in South America that does not impose entry visa requirements for Chinese passport holders, has become a gateway for Chinese citizens seeking asylum in the U.S. Many of these migrants reportedly fly to Istanbul, Turkey, or Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, before continuing to Ecuador. From there, they travel by bus to Necoclí in northern Colombia, cross the treacherous Darién Gap jungle trail to reach Panama, and continue through Central America toward the U.S. southern border.

Upon reaching the U.S. border, Chinese nationals often request asylum, citing persecution by the Chinese communist regime led by Xi Jinping. According to Infobae, many of these U.S.-bound migrants are middle-class citizens who invest substantial amounts of money in their journeys, using social media platforms like TikTok to plan and prepare their routes. The entire journey can take several months and costs “thousands of [U.S.] dollars.”

The Argentine news outlet cited a study published by the Washington-based Wilson Center, which noted that while Chinese nationals have historically entered the U.S. through study programs or H1-B work visas, an increasing number are now claiming asylum at the southern border. The report attributes this shift to China’s economic difficulties, including low GDP growth and high youth unemployment rates.

“Upon arrival in the United States, many Chinese migrants seek asylum and integrate into established Chinese communities, where they find support and resources,” Infobae reported. Despite mixed views within these communities, the approval rate of asylum applications for Chinese nationals is relatively high.

In 2023, about 50,000 Chinese migrants entered Ecuador, with roughly half leaving the country. Those who continued on hired human traffickers, known as “Coyotes,” to smuggle them into the U.S. Human traffickers openly use TikTok to offer “safe travel” services from Ecuador to the U.S., including “VIP” routes through the Darién Gap controlled by the Colombian Gulf Clan, which charges migrants for passage through the area.

Of the Chinese migrants who remain in Ecuador, many are applying for temporary or permanent visas, according to the country’s Interior Ministry. A record number of Chinese applied for visas in 2023 and the number has increased through the first four months of 2024.

According to a report by Insight Crime, the Gulf Clan offers “packages” to migrants for upwards of $1,000, providing an expedited and “safer” route through the Darién Gap. The Gulf Clan reportedly earned between $17.5 million to $25 million from these packages in 2023.

In January, U.S. Border Patrol authorities announced that nearly 16,000 Chinese migrants had been apprehended since the start of the new fiscal year in October 2023, a figure that is nearly two-thirds of the total registered during the start of the previous fiscal year.

Statistical information published by Panama’s migration authorities in April showed that more than 125,000 migrants crossed through the Darién Gap between January and April 17, 2024. In 2023, Panama recorded a record-breaking 520,000 migrants crossing the jungle trail, with the majority coming from Venezuela, Ecuador, Haiti, and China.

Panama’s President-Elect José Raúl Mulino, who takes office on July 1, has pledged to crack down on U.S.-bound migrants crossing through the Darién Gap. Frank Ábrego, the incoming public security minister, announced plans to establish checkpoints across the Darién Gap to detain and deport migrants, stating that building a wall in the jungle is “impossible.”
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Credit: YourNews