A refugee deported to Bhutan by the U.S. is now stateless Once deported to Bhutan, some Nepali-speaking Bhutanese refugees say they are told to leave. Many have since disappeared, while others are homeless and stateless, according to immigration advocates. Immigration July 16, 20258:35 AM ET A refugee deported to Bhutan by the U.S. finds himself stranded and stateless Transcript Download Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/g-s1-77553/nx-s1-9376097" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript AILSA CHANG, HOST: President Trump's mass deportation effort is devastating a small Asian refugee community in the U.S. The administration has deported more than two dozen refugees with ties to Bhutan back to the small Himalayan kingdom. But many of the deportees say authorities in Bhutan are turning them away upon arrival, leaving them stranded and stateless in Asia. NPR's Juliana Kim has our story.JULIANA KIM, BYLINE: Wedged between India and China, Bhutan is known for its natural beauty, including lush forests and towering mountains. But for Ray, a refugee of that small country, being deported there was terrifying. He asked to be identified only by his English first name to protect his chance to appeal his deportation.RAY: For us, it's a very scary place. The stories that our parents told us, it's very scary.KIM: That's because Ray's parents were among the estimated 100,000 people driven out of Bhutan some 30 years ago. They belonged to a community of ethnic Nepalese who lived in Bhutan for generations. Ethnic tensions emerged as the country began to modernize and unify. Ray was born in a refugee camp in nearby Nepal. He and his family resettled in the American South over a decade ago. His April deportation was triggered by felony burglary charges from his teenage years. He got two years' probation. Ray, who is now in his late 20s, calls it the biggest regret of his life. When he was deported to Bhutan, he says local authorities quickly ordered him to leave.RAY: They tell us that, you can't stay here because your language and our language don't match.KIM: Ray is now hiding in India with no family, legal status or passport. He says he's currently getting by thanks to a local pastor who took him in.RAY: It's desperation right now for me.KIM: For years, Bhutan didn't accept refugees, but under President Trump's immigration crackdown, deportations have picked up, even as Bhutan is accused of turning them away. Aisa Villarosa is an attorney with the legal aid group Asian Law Caucus.AISA VILLAROSA: Our understanding is that families have been verbally told by ICE officers that the government of Bhutan will welcome them, that it's going to be OK. And we're really seeing just the opposite.KIM: Villarosa says that many refugees deported to Bhutan have gone missing. It's unclear where they are, and their families have been unable to reach them. A few have returned to what remains of the refugee camps in Nepal, but last month, the government of Nepal ruled that deportees can't stay there. The deportations have also sent shockwaves through Bhutan's larger refugee community in the U.S., says Robin Gurung, co-founder of Asian Refugees United.ROBIN GURUNG: The idea of being pushed away, being deported to Bhutan, means that they're taking us to the same place that persecuted us, expelled us and made us stateless.KIM: ICE and the Consulate of Bhutan did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The Trump administration has argued that noncitizens with criminal records shouldn't be allowed to stay in the U.S. simply because their home nations refuse them. For now, Ray is fighting his deportation by ICE. It may be a long shot, but he says he doesn't want his children back in the U.S. to grow up without a father.Juliana Kim, NPR News. Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.