PRESIDENT Donald Trump’s administration has offered illegal immigrants a free flight and a $1,000 check to self-deport out of the United States.
The Department of Homeland Security announced the “historic opportunity” on Monday, insisting it’ll benefit both illegal immigrants and the US government.
Illegal immigrants who use the US Customs and Border Protection Home App to self-deport will get travel assistance and be paid $1,000 in financial aid.
But the money will only be given after their return has been confirmed through the app.
In the DHS announcement, the agency said self-deportation is a “dignified way to leave the US and will allow illegal aliens to avoid being encountered by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.”
The Trump administration said its new self-deportation incentive has “already proven successful.”
One immigrant took a flight home from Chicago to Honduras and others facing deportation have already booked flights for this week and next week, according to DHS.
“If you are here illegally, self-deportation is the best, safest, and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said.
DHS expects the initiative to cut deportation costs paid by taxpayers by roughly 70%.
The average cost to arrest, detain, and deport an illegal immigrant is $17,121 per person, the agency said.
Even while paying for the stipend and commercial flights, having self-deport is expected to cost just about $4,500 per person on average, DHS told Fox News.
“This is the safest option for our law enforcement [and] aliens and is a 70% savings for US taxpayers,” Noem said.
Before the new initiative was announced, more than 5,000 illegal immigrants had already self-deported using the CBP Home app in April, Fox News Digital reported, citing DHS data.
TRUMP FLAUNTS IMMIGRATION SUCCESS
Trump touted his administration’s success in cracking down on illegal immigration as he celebrated the first 100 days of his second term last week.
Last Monday, the White House lawn was covered with signs featuring photos of alleged criminals who ICE arrested.
The crime they were accused of was written under their photo.
That same day, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and Trump’s “border czar” Tom Homan gave a press conference in which they detailed record-low illegal immigration numbers.
Leavitt told reporters attempted illegal crossings into the US at the southern border hit historic lows in February and March.
This past March, US Border Patrol encountered just over 7,000 illegal immigrants, Leavitt said.
That is a 95% decrease from the 140,000 illegal immigrants that border agents encountered in March 2024 under the Joe Biden administration, according to Leavitt.
When one reporter asked Homan why there is still a national emergency at the southern border if illegal crossings are at a record low, Homan mentioned the damage caused by drug cartels and gangs.
“We gotta ensure that not one ounce of fentanyl comes across the border to kill Americans,” he said.
“The president has declared the cartels in Mexico a terrorist organization along with MS-13 and [Tren de Aragua].
“It’s an emergency until the cartels are wiped off the face of this Earth.”
Trump’s tough-on-immigration stance goes back to his first presidential campaign in 2016.
During the 2024 election cycle, Trump fiercely criticized the Biden administration’s handling of the southern border and promised the largest deportation in US history.
But carrying out a deportation of that scale is costly, so the Trump administration is pushing illegal immigrants to return to their native country on their own.
Meanwhile, the White House has also overseen several ICE raids like “Operation Tidal Wave” in Florida last month.
Federal agents arrested over 1,100 illegal immigrants and removed “several violent gang members” during the raid, according to ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan.
Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/14168912/donald-trump-immigrants-self-deport-money-free-flight/
