New Act Mandates Sanctions, Asset Freezes on Haitian Elites Tied to Gangs for Five Years

The “Haiti Criminal Collusion Transparency Act of 2025” is a direct response to the ongoing security crisis in Haiti, where criminal gangs often operate with the backing of powerful political and economic figures. This bill sets up a mandatory, five-year mechanism for the U.S. government to identify and punish those elites. Specifically, the Secretary of State must produce an annual public report detailing the major criminal gangs in Haiti, their leaders, and the specific Haitian political and economic elites—like corporate executives and former government officials—who are colluding with them to advance their own financial and political agendas (Sec. 2).

The Mandate: Name Them, Shame Them, Freeze Them

This isn't just about transparency; it’s about consequences. Once the report is delivered to Congress, the President is mandated—within 90 days—to impose sanctions on every foreign person named in that report (Sec. 3). These sanctions are serious: they include freezing any assets the named individuals have in the U.S. financial system, using the powerful tools of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). For regular folks, this means if a Haitian elite has a condo in Miami, a bank account in New York, or investments handled by a U.S. firm, those assets are locked down.

Simultaneously, the sanctions include an immediate, automatic visa and entry ban. If you are named in the report, the Secretary of State must cancel any existing U.S. visa you hold, effectively barring you from entering the country (Sec. 3). The message here is clear: if you are identified as funding or directing gang violence in Haiti, you lose access to the U.S. financial system and U.S. travel privileges.

Humanitarian Lifelines and Presidential Leeway

Recognizing the delicate situation on the ground, the bill includes two important carve-outs. First, it explicitly states that these sanctions cannot block transactions related to providing humanitarian assistance to Haiti. This ensures that aid, food, medicine, and the necessary financial transfers to get them there are protected (Sec. 3). Second, the sanctions cannot restrict the importation of physical goods. This means that while bank accounts can be frozen, the flow of goods themselves isn't meant to be choked off by this specific mechanism (Sec. 3).

However, there is a significant escape hatch: the President retains the power to waive these sanctions for any specific person if they certify to Congress that lifting the restrictions is important for the national interests of the United States (Sec. 3). This is the kind of provision that policy analysts watch closely. While it provides necessary flexibility for diplomacy or national security, it also means that the mandatory nature of the sanctions could be sidestepped if a powerful individual is deemed too important to sanction, potentially undermining the law's intent. The whole system—the reporting, the sanctions, and the waiver authority—is set to expire after five years (Sec. 5), giving Congress a built-in deadline to review its effectiveness.