Trump Administration Offers $1,000 for Voluntary Deportations

The Trump administration has unveiled a new initiative aimed at encouraging undocumented immigrants to voluntarily leave the United States, as per Al Jazeera.

As part of its ongoing efforts for mass deportations, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Monday that it will offer $1,000 in financial assistance, including travel stipends and airfare, to those who agree to return to their home countries voluntarily.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem emphasized that the move is designed to make self-deportation a more attractive and cost-effective option for illegal immigrants.

“If you are here illegally, self-deportation is the best, safest, and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest,” Noem stated.

She added that individuals who use the CBP Home app to notify the government of their plans to return home will also be “deprioritized” for detention and removal by immigration authorities.

The new program is part of the administration’s broader efforts to reduce the costs associated with deportations. The DHS noted that the average cost of arresting, detaining, and deporting an undocumented immigrant is approximately $17,000, whereas the financial assistance and airfare for voluntary departures would be less expensive.

The Trump administration has long pursued aggressive immigration policies, including the deportation of millions of people. However, deportation numbers have remained lower than those under the previous administration of President Joe Biden. As of now, the Trump administration has deported 152,000 people since taking office, a figure lower than the 195,000 deportations recorded from February to April of the previous year under Biden.

Despite the lower deportation numbers, the Trump administration has continued to focus on immigration enforcement, including threats of steep fines, stripping legal statuses, and sending deported individuals to prisons in locations such as Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and El Salvador.

The announcement of the stipend plan follows comments from President Trump in April, where he suggested that the U.S. would work with migrants and asylum seekers who wish to return to their countries.

“If they’re good, if we want them back in, we’re going to work with them to get them back in as quickly as we can,” Trump said.

The DHS also mentioned that those who choose to leave voluntarily “may help preserve” the ability to return legally, although no specific program or pathway was outlined for future re-entry.