What happened
The Department of Homeland Security said Monday it would give $1,000 and a plane ticket home to any undocumented immigrants who opted to "self-deport," calling the "historic" offer a "dignified way to leave the U.S." Migrants who register for "voluntary self-deportation" through the Customs and Border Protection app will be "deprioritized for detention and removal," DHS said, so long as "they are making meaningful strides" toward their departure.
Who said what
President Donald Trump said migrants might be given a "path to coming back into the country" if they self-deport, though neither he nor DHS explained how. "Maybe someday, with a little work, they can come back in," he said, "if they're the kind of people that we want in our country." But Aaron Reichlin-Melnick at the American Immigration Council told The Associated Press that immigrants would probably be better off staying in the country if they hoped to gain legal status. The administration is pushing self-deportation, he said, because "they’re not getting their numbers."
Trump is "struggling to increase deportations to fulfill" his campaign promise of a million expulsions in his first year, The Wall Street Journal said. Despite aggressive tactics and high deportation quotas, his administration has averaged "about 660 a day, compared with 742 a day in 2024."
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DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News that immigrants should trust the offer because "we're giving you our word that we will give you this money and that you can leave today," but there will also be "documentation."
What next?
DHS said it had already paid for one plane ticket for a migrant to return to Honduras from Chicago and more tickets were being booked for this week and next. It's not clear where the department is finding the money for the $1,000 stipends and other costs, but DHS said each self-deportation would cut 70% from the average $17,121 cost of arresting, detaining and removing an immigrant.
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