Could Elon Musk be deported from the US?

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7 hours ago

US President Donald Trump and Elon Musk have been at odds over the 'One Big Beautiful Bill'. The world's richest man last month lashed out at the president he spent $250 million to get elected, calling the bill 'an abomination'. Musk has spent the past few days racheting up criticism of both Trump and the bill, leading the US president to threaten his Tesla and SpaceX subsidies and now even suggesting that Musk could be deported. Let's take a closer look read more
Elon Musk and Donald Trump have been going at it over the 'One Big Beautiful Bill'. Reuters
The battle between Donald Trump and Elon Musk just got a lot more interesting.
The US President on Tuesday, asked if he was going to deport Musk, said, 'We'll have to take a look.'
The two men have been at odds over Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill'.
The world's richest man, who spent $250 million to get Trump elected, lashed out at the president last month.
This included his explosive claim that the US president was in the Epstein files.
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Musk later walked back some criticism of the president.
But what happened? And can Musk actually be deported from the United States?
What happened?
Musk has spent much of the past few days on social media hammering Trump and the Republicans over the bill – which he previously described as an 'abomination'.
The bill, which provides tax cuts for the rich, will add trillions to the national debt and strip millions of their healthcare.
Musk this week decried the Republicans as the 'porky pig party' and warned that the passage of the bill would be political suicide.
Musk also threatened Republicans voting for the bill, saying that they may find themselves facing well-funded challengers.
'Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame! And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth,' Musk wrote on X.
Musk even mused about founding a new political party – 'the America Party' – vowing that it would be formed the next day if the 'insane spending bill passes'.
'Time for a new political party that actually cares about the people,' Musk added.
Trump, unwilling to let anyone have the last word, hit back at Musk on social media.
The US president had threatened to take away government subsidies for Tesla and SpaceX – which both the companies are heavily reliant on.
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Trump said that Musk without the subsidies would have to 'shut shop' and move back to South Africa.
US President Donald Trump has also threatened to take subsidies away from Elon Musk's companies.
'Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for President, that I was strongly against the EV Mandate. It is ridiculous, and was always a major part of my campaign. Electric cars are fine, but not everyone should be forced to own one," Trump wrote on social media.
'Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa,' he added.
Trump also suggested that he might sic the Department of Government efficiency, which Musk previously headed up, on the billionaire.
'No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE. Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED,' Trump added.
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Musk, though, seemed determined not to back down.
He wrote on X, 'I am literally saying cut it all. Now'.
Then, Trump on Tuesday, asked by a reporter at the White House about deporting Musk, refused to rule it out.
'We'll have to take a look,' Trump said.
The US president then once again threatened Musk's subsidies.
'We might have to put Doge on Elon,' Trump added. 'You know what Doge is. Doge is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon.'
Can Musk actually be deported from the United States?
First, let's take a look at from where Trump likely got the idea.
It was Trump advisor Steve Bannon in June, amid the dust-up between the two men over the bill , who had called for Musk to be deported from the United States.
Bannon, who is known as 'Trump's brain', claimed Musk, who is originally from South Africa, was in America illegally.
He also claimed that Musk's reported drug use should be probed and that his high-level clearances should be suspended.
The answer to the question if Musk can be deported is – it depends.
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Now, for Musk to be deported, he would first have to be legally stripped of his citizenship.
While it is almost impossible to strip a natural-born US citizen of his or her citizenship, this is not true for those who acquire citizenship.
Musk, originally from South Africa, became a US citizen in 2002.
Prior to that, he was a citizen of Canada.
Musk came to the US to study on a J-1 visa.
The Washington Post in 2022 reported that Musk was an illegal immigrant when he began his career in the United States.
Musk entered the US on a student visa in 1995.
Though he said he would enroll at Stanford University, he never did so.
Instead, he founded his company Zip2 – a software firm which was later bought by Compact for over $300 million.
The newspaper quoted Musk saying in a 2005 email used in a defamation lawsuit that he applied to Stanford because he otherwise had 'no legal right to stay in the country.'
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Musk has denied claims he was in the US illegally, calling his status at the time 'a legal grey area'.
The question here is whether or not Musk lied to the US government during the process of becoming a citizen – known as naturalisation.
The act of stripping a citizenship from someone who has acquired it, like Musk, is known as denaturalisation.
Elon Musk can be deported if he is legally stripped of his citizenship. Reuters
This can be done if the person who has become a US citizen has lied to the government during the process or concealed facts that would have led the government not to bestow citizenship on the individual.
The person can be denaturalised if he or she is found to have 'illegally procured' citizenship or by 'concealment of a material fact or by willful misrepresentation'.
So, the question is – did Musk lie to the US government about his past during the process of becoming a citizen?
If so, experts say the answer is probably yes.
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How would it work?
The process would begin with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) sending such a case to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The DOJ then files a revocation of naturalization actions (for civil denaturalisation cases) or criminal charges (for criminal denaturalisation cases) in federal court.
A defendant can either defend themselves or renounce US citizenship.
If the person is stripped of their citizenship, their status returns to that he or she had prior to becoming a citizen.
In case their immigration status is unlawful, they can be deported immediately.
It gets even worse if he or she is convicted criminally.
In that case, he or she can face jail time before being deported.
However, it is important to note that the government must satisfy the burden of a 'high level of proof' in court to denaturalise a citizen.
In civil trials, the US government must offer 'clear, convincing, and unequivocal evidence which does not leave the issue in doubt'.
Trump advisor Steve Bannon in June, amid the dust-up between the two men over the bill, had called for Musk to be deported from the United States. Reuters
In criminal trials, the government must show 'proof beyond a reasonable doubt'.
The US, between 1990 and 2017, has pursued only a handful of such denaturalisation cases every year.
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Though such cases have increased under the Trump administration, only a small number of people have actually had their citizenship stripped thus far.
Musk, being the world's richest man, would also have access to the best legal representation his money can buy.
He can also always reconcile with Trump, who has shown an affinity to forgive and forget if he sees the benefit in it for himself.
With inputs from agencies