The Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday that it has added three Chinese genomics companies to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, effectively banning their imports into the United States starting Thursday.

The companies are Shenzhen BGI Technology Co., Ltd., also known as BGI Group, along with its affiliates BGI Genomics Co., Ltd. and MGI Tech Co., Ltd. The action creates a rebuttable presumption that goods from these entities are produced with forced labor and prohibits their entry unless importers can prove otherwise.

DHS determined that the firms help the government of China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region build mass surveillance infrastructure using genetic data to monitor ethnic minorities. This supports broader repression, including labor transfer programs and internment often disguised as healthcare initiatives. The companies source materials from Xinjiang or work with the regional government to recruit, transport, transfer, harbor, or receive forced labor from Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other persecuted groups.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated that the United States will not allow companies tied to forced labor and the surveillance of persecuted minorities to profit from the American market. The move advances President Trump's commitment to enforcing trade laws, keeping goods linked to forced labor out of U.S. supply chains, and protecting American workers and businesses from unfair competition.

The companies have denied the allegations. BGI Group said it has not engaged in any form of forced labor and firmly opposes all such practices. The firms are also listed by the Pentagon as Chinese military companies.

This action brings the total number of entities on the UFLPA Entity List to 190. It follows prior concerns over BGI Group's ties to the Chinese government and its access to genetic data, which U.S. officials view as national security risks. The enforcement reflects ongoing efforts to counter the Chinese Communist Party's human rights abuses in Xinjiang.