The US Embassy on Wednesday warned that using a visa to travel for the primary purpose of giving birth in the United States, so that the child will have U.S. citizenship, is not permitted, and Consular officers will deny a visa application if they have reason to believe this is intent of the travel to the country.

In a statement on its Facebook page warning against “birth tourism”, the Embassy also said if someone already has a visa and travels to the United States for the primary purpose of giving birth, and use Medicaid or other U.S Government assistance to pay for their medical care, that person may not be eligible to renew their visa in the future.

The US State Department has often warned about the practice of women travelling to the US with their visitor’s visa with the sole purpose of giving birth in the US so that the child could be granted citizenship status.

The US Government has been clamping down on the practice and there have been reported cases of pregnant women being denied entry into the US when questioned about the purpose of the trip.

The current US Administration has been taking a serious position against the practice as it seeks to also stem illegal immigration.