The Department of Homeland Security announced that 1.6 million people who were in the United States illegally have self-deported, and another 500,000 have been deported.
The department has been pushing self-deportations, spending millions on advertisements that showcase a $1,000 payment and a plane ticket that people who register to self-deport are given.
It’s unclear how much money in total has been given to people who have self-deported.
Tricia McLaughlin, DHS’ assistant secretary for public affairs, said the Trump administration is on pace to “shatter” current deportation records.
“President Trump and Secretary Noem have jumpstarted an agency that was hamstrung and barred from doing its job for the last four years,” she said in a statement.
A member of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement Special Response Team displays a unit patch on their uniform during a protest at ICE headquarters in Portland, Oregon on Oct. 4, 2025.
Carlos Barria/Reuters
“In the face of a historic number of injunctions from activist judges and threats to law enforcement, DHS, ICE and CBP have not just closed the border, but made historic strides to carry out President Trump’s promise of arresting and deporting illegal aliens who have invaded our country,” McLaughlin said.
“Illegal aliens are hearing our message to leave now or face the consequence: Migrants are now turning back before they even reach our borders. Migration through Panama’s Darien Gap is down 99.99%,” she claimed.
President Donald Trump promised to carry out mass deportations during his 2024 campaign.
Activists have claimed that immigration enforcement has gone too far.
