WASHINGTON – The Trump administration has announced a new voluntary deportation program offering undocumented migrants a $1,000 stipend and travel assistance if they choose to leave the United States on their own.
The initiative, announced on Monday by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is part of the measures to reduce deportation costs and ease pressure on the immigration enforcement system.
Migrants who opt into the program will receive financial support and assistance with booking travel, but only after their departure is confirmed through a DHS tracking app known as CBP Home.
The app was originally launched as CBP One under the Biden administration to manage legal entries at the southern border, but it has now been repurposed by the Trump administration as a platform for self-deportation.
According to DHS, one migrant has already used the service to deport and additional departures are scheduled in the coming weeks.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defended the latest policy, calling it the best, safest, and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest. The department claims the new approach could reduce the average cost of deportation by nearly 70%.
In a statement, DHS clarified that the migrants who demonstrate that they are actively preparing to leave using the CBP Home app will be deprioritized for detention and removal. While the administration suggested that voluntary return may help preserve future eligibility for legal re-entry, no specific legal pathway or program has been mentioned.
President Donald Trump, who returned to office in January, has vowed to crack down on illegal immigration and has launched aggressive crackdown even against students. In recent months, the administration has employed increasingly aggressive tactics to discourage undocumented immigrants.
Trump previewed the new voluntary departure plan in April, stating, “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.”
