Trump administration offers $1,000 for illegal migrants to leave the US

President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday, May 5, 2025, announced a new initiative offering $1,000 to undocumented immigrants in the United States who voluntarily return to their home countries.

This is in his administration’s continued aggressive immigration enforcement strategy.

This effort, part of a broader push to encourage “self-deportation,” includes additional benefits such as paid travel assistance.

According to a statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), immigrants who notify authorities of their intent to leave will be placed at a lower priority for detention.

The said immigrants who use a newly repurposed mobile application, now called CBP Home, would also get forced removal by immigration enforcement agencies.

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

She emphasized that DHS is now offering financial aid and travel support for undocumented immigrants who choose to return voluntarily via the CBP Home app.

DHS reported it has already funded a return flight for one individual from Chicago to Honduras.

She highlighted that more similar arrangements were scheduled for the coming weeks.

This move is seen as part of President Trump’s broader commitment to intensifying immigration enforcement, a key pledge of his political platform.

His administration is working to deport large numbers of undocumented immigrants, though it is a logistically and financially burdensome goal.

To supplement its efforts, the administration has reportedly also requested a significant funding increase from Congress for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

ICE is the federal agency responsible for deportations.

At the same time, it is encouraging undocumented immigrants to leave voluntarily.

This it says is partly because the sheer number of people in the country illegally makes mass enforcement unrealistic.

This push for self-deportation is being supported by a media campaign

The campaign  includes television ads warning of immigration enforcement actions.

There were also social media posts depicting arrests and deportations, including transfers to detention facilities in El Salvador.

The administration portrays voluntary departure as an opportunity for migrants to preserve their future chances of legal reentry to the United States.

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday, Trump suggested that individuals who self-deport might be allowed to return legally later if they are deemed to be “good people” who “love our country.”

Those who are not, he added bluntly, “won’t.”

However, immigration advocates have expressed serious concerns about the implications of this policy.

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, warned that leaving the U.S. without completing immigration court proceedings can be legally risky.

He pointed out that undocumented individuals who are already in removal proceedings could automatically receive deportation orders.

This according to him, is if they fail to appear in court.

Moreover, leaving the country is often interpreted as abandoning applications for relief, such as asylum.

Reichlin-Melnick also noted that DHS has not indicated any coordination with immigration courts to protect individuals from adverse consequences if they depart mid-proceeding.

“People’s immigration status is not as simple as this makes it out to be,” he said.

He questioned the legal authority and financial source behind the $1,000 payment program.

He argued that the administration may be resorting to these incentives because it cannot achieve the deportation numbers it has promised.

The CBP Home app, central to this strategy, is supposedly a rebranded version of CBP One,.

This tool is one originally used during the Biden administration to allow nearly a million migrants to schedule legal entry appointments.

Now, under the Trump administration, it serves the opposite function: helping people leave the country.

DHS claims that “thousands” of migrants have already used it to self-deport.

Mark Krikorian, director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates for reduced immigration, supported the general concept of paying migrants to leave.

He stressed, however, that execution is key.

He questioned how the government could ensure compliance and prevent return attempts.

Krikorian suggested that migrants might need to sign agreements not to challenge future removal if they re-enter.

“The execution matters, but the concept is sound,” he said.

This approach is not entirely new. Governments around the world have experimented with financial incentives to encourage voluntary repatriation.

A 2011 study by the Migration Policy Institute and the European University Institute identified 128 such “pay-to-go” programs globally.

While some, like a German program returning Bosnian migrants in the 1990s, saw limited success, most failed to generate significant returns or long-term resettlement.

Analysts say the appeal of these programs is clear:

they are significantly cheaper than the estimated $17,121 it costs DHS to arrest, detain, and forcibly remove an undocumented individual.

Additionally, voluntary returns reportedly bypass the diplomatic hurdles often involved in securing the repatriation of nationals from uncooperative countries.

Still, the long-term effectiveness of such programs, analysts say, remains uncertain.

This is as it is reportedly unclear how many migrants actually remain in their home countries after receiving payments.

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