WASHINGTON -- The US Agency for International Development (USAID) will lay off 1,600 employees in the United States and place the majority of the remaining staff on administrative leave, the agency said Sunday.

"As of 11:59 pm EST (Eastern Standard Time) on Sunday, Feb 23, 2025, all USAID direct hire personnel, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and/or specially designated programs, will be placed on administrative leave globally," the agency said on its website.

"Concurrently, USAID is beginning to implement a Reduction-in-Force that will affect approximately 1,600 USAID personnel with duty stations in the United States," it said, noting that individuals who are affected will receive specific notifications on Sunday.

"Designated essential personnel" who are expected to continue working will be informed by the agency leadership by 5 pm EST on Sunday.

For overseas personnel, USAID intends for a voluntary agency-funded return travel program and other benefits, it added.

USAID is a key target for government reform by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk.

Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump said that there was "tremendous fraud" in the use of USAID funds at "unprecedented levels of corruption", and demanded that it be shut down.

On Feb 4, the official website of USAID issued a notice that starting 11:59 pm EST on Feb 7, all directly employed personnel worldwide would be placed on "administrative leave," with a few designated individuals as exceptions.

On Feb 7, Judge Carl Nichols of the US district court for the District of Columbia ruled in favor of a request from US labor unions to delay USAID's global employee "administrative leave" plan.

On Feb 21, however, the judge dismissed the request, giving the green light for the "administrative leave" plan to proceed.

The latest ruling also enables the Trump administration to begin the 30-day countdown for USAID employees stationed abroad to return to the US at the government's expense.

According to previous reports from US media, the Trump administration's goal was to reduce USAID's global workforce from over 10,000 to fewer than 300, a reduction of 97 percent.