The Trump administration announced on Monday a new program that offers financial incentives to undocumented migrants who voluntarily return to their home countries, including paid travel and a $1,000 stipend.
President Donald Trump, speaking at a White House event, said the initiative aims to reduce the cost of immigration enforcement while offering migrants a dignified way to depart the United States.
“We’re going to pay each one a certain amount of money, and we’re going to get them a beautiful flight back to where they came from,” Trump said. “We’re going to work with them so that maybe someday, with a little work, they can come back—if they’re good people, if they’re the kind of people we want in our country.”
He added that the self-deportation program could offer a legal pathway back into the United States for eligible individuals in the future.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem formally unveiled the initiative, calling self-deportation “the best, safest, and most cost-effective way to leave the United States and avoid arrest.” The program will be managed through the CBP Home app—an existing digital platform developed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to facilitate voluntary departures.
According to DHS, the $1,000 stipend will be paid after the individual’s return to their home country is verified via the app. The department framed the initiative as a cost-saving measure, estimating that voluntary departures using the app could reduce deportation costs by up to 70%.
Currently, DHS says the average cost of arresting, detaining, and removing an undocumented migrant stands at $17,121. In contrast, the new program is expected to drastically cut those expenses while offering a non-confrontational alternative to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations.
“Self-deportation is a dignified way to leave the U.S. and will allow illegal aliens to avoid being encountered by ICE,” DHS said in a statement.
The department also confirmed that at least one individual—a migrant from Honduras—has already used the CBP Home app to return voluntarily under the program.
During the event, Trump reiterated his broader immigration agenda, including a pledge made during his campaign to carry out mass deportations. He claimed there may be as many as 21 million undocumented migrants currently in the United States. However, the Pew Research Center estimates that number stood at approximately 11 million in 2022, based on U.S. Census Bureau data.
AFP
