Trump Administration Offers $1,000 Incentive for Undocumented Migrants to Voluntarily Leave the U.S
Trump Administration Offers $1,000 Incentive for Undocumented Migrants to Voluntarily Leave the U.S. – The Trump administration has unveiled a new program that offers undocumented immigrants $1,000 and travel assistance if they voluntarily exit the United States.
The initiative, managed through the CBP One mobile application, is described by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as a safer and more affordable alternative to arrest and detention.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem emphasized the approach in a recent statement:
ALSO READ: Trump’s Papal Bombshell: “I Would Like to Be the Next Pope” Sends the Internet Into Meltdown
“If you are here illegally, self-deportation is the best, safest, and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest.”
The cost-saving angle is a major driving force behind the plan.
DHS estimates that detaining and deporting a person without legal status costs approximately $17,000, whereas the voluntary return stipend comes at a fraction of that expense.
The program is already in effect. One migrant who entered the country during the Biden era reportedly accepted the $1,000 offer and flew back to Honduras from Chicago.
DHS confirmed that more flights are lined up in the coming weeks to assist others who opt in.
Since Trump returned to office on January 20, his administration has deported an estimated 152,000 people, a figure that trails behind the 195,000 deportations carried out during the same three-month period last year under President Biden.
Immigration enforcement continues to be a cornerstone of Trump’s presidency and re-election campaign, but the high costs of forced removals appear to be prompting creative strategies aimed at achieving similar results for less.
