Donald Trump is expected to target undocumented immigrants, the majority of whom come from Central America, when he takes office next week. What is less known is that immigrants from certain countries can legally work on U.S. farms for a limited period of time.

Farmworker Sandra Noemi Bucu Saz is delighted.

She recently returned to Guatemala, Central America, from the United States, where she was picking strawberries in California.

“They paid us $19 (£15.60) an hour,” Sandra said. “We were asked to pick seven boxes an hour and if we picked more then we got paid a little extra.

"It's a lot different than my salary in Guatemala, which was about $10 a day when I had a job."

Sandra is one of the approximately 5,000 Guatemalans who work legally in the United States each year, thanks to U.S. Government Visa Program For temporary agricultural workers from overseas, called H-2A.

This allows U.S. farms that can't find enough locals to do the work to bring in workers from overseas. Foreign workers can stay for up to 12 months and then must return to their home country.

For people like Sandra, it's a chance to move on with their lives and help their families by sending back some of the money they've earned. In Guatemala, there are currently about 30 recruitment companies registered with the Guatemalan government to help people find temporary jobs in the United States through H-2A visas.

It's a cold, gray, windy day in southern Guatemala as Sanda proudly shows off a plot of land she rents in Las Tres Cruces, high in the mountains near the town where she and her family live Santiago Zacatepex.

She and her relatives grew corn, lettuce, beans and spinach for their consumption. If enough is left over, they sell it in the local market. Sandra's dream is to save enough money to buy some land so they don't have to rent.

But first, she needed to pay off the remaining debt she incurred after she and her sister were defrauded the first time they tried to obtain a U.S. visa.

"We pay someone $2,000 each because we want to get jobs in the United States," she said. “My sister and I thought we needed to do this so we could move on and achieve our dreams. So we got a loan to get the money but sadly it was a total scam and they took our money ”

This is a common practice among Guatemalan scammers who take advantage of people's desire to travel to the United States and trick them into handing over their money.

Cesia Ochoa is the executive director of the Guatemalan branch of a legal recruitment company called Cierto. The company, which also has offices in the United States and Mexico, is one of about 30 companies officially registered in Guatemala and offering H-2A visas.

“Part of our inspiration for opening an office in Guatemala was to help locals avoid scams,” she said.

When Sandra travels to the United States via Cierto, she pays nothing. Instead, the company is paid by farm businesses looking for temporary workers in the United States.

"It is very important for us to have a good connection between businesses and workers, and that the wages and contracts they offer are genuine," Ms Ochoa explained.

While the H-2A visa allows Guatemalans to legally find temporary farm work in the United States, it is estimated that more than 675,000 Undocumented Guatemalans in the United States, According to the Pew Research Center think tank.

200,000 more He was found to have attempted to enter the United States without valid documentation within the 12 months ending last September. That's the third-highest number after Mexicans and Venezuelans.

Olga Romero lives near a small town called Olopa in northeastern Guatemala. She has seven children, two of whom are working in the United States without any visas.

"This is a poor area, it's hard to find work, and families often pay coyotes $2,000 to $3,000 to travel illegally to the United States," Olga said.

A big problem is that in order to raise this money, many families need to borrow against the value of their home. If the money is not repaid, they risk losing their property.

This is often the case because their chances of reaching the United States are far from guaranteed and there is a risk of accidents along the way or being turned away at the U.S. border.

But the rewards are high. Money sent back from loved ones from the United States, known as remittances, is supporting Guatemala's economy. In 2023, the country received a total of US$19.8 billion in overseas remittances, According to a study by the Inter-American Development Bank.

President Donald Trump has vowed to get tough on undocumented immigrants and threatened mass deportations.

But it's unclear whether he will take steps to limit or even halt H-2A and other visa programs for temporary foreign workers.

Vanessa García, executive director of the Juan Francisco Garcia Comparini Foundation, a recruitment organization, is optimistic such visas will continue.

The foundation helps approximately 200 Guatemalans come to the United States to work on H-2A visas each year. These farm workers help harvest lettuce, broccoli, spinach and beans.

"I think opportunities for Guatemalans to obtain H-2A visas will continue and may even increase," she said. "I'm not worried, I think it's a great opportunity for workers."

Joe Martinez, Cierto's U.S. founder and CEO, said that while he expects the visa program to continue under Trump, foreign workers' rights may be curtailed.

“Sieto is concerned that the push to simplify and reduce bureaucratic procedures could lead to projects with fewer worker protections and oversight.”

He worries farm workers' wages could fall and their housing conditions on U.S. farms could worsen.

Back in Guatemala, Héctor Benjamín Xoc Xar said he has traveled to the United States twice to work on an H-2A visa. He was most recently seen growing vegetables in the greenhouse. He said he was inspired by his family.

“I want them to do better academically than I did,” he said. “I dropped out of school at a very young age to work in the fields.

"Before I got this job, it seemed like my daughter wouldn't be able to finish her final year of accounting because we couldn't afford it, but now I've managed to pay her fees and she's working as an accountant. "