Thousands of illegals rush to self deport before ICE comes for them

An increasing number of illegal aliens are self-deporting to avoid facing far worse consequences, including exorbitant fines and potential deportation to a notorious mega prison in El Salvador.

“We’re seeing sky-high levels of reverse migration, people turning around at our southern border,” Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News late last month.

Listen:

Self-deportations are up. Migrants are turning back before they ever reach our border. @POTUS Trump and @Sec_Noem have a clear message for criminal illegal aliens: LEAVE NOW. If you do not self-deport, we will hunt you down, arrest you, and deport you. @TriciaOhio pic.twitter.com/y5aWb4E2gV

— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) March 31, 2025

In more recent remarks to Fox News, McLaughlin added that illegal aliens who choose to remain in the U.S. instead of self-deporting face the risk of not only being deported to El Salvador but also being fined.

“Illegal aliens should use the CBP Home app to self-deport and leave the country now. If they don’t, they will face the consequences,” she said. “This includes a fine of $998 per day for every day that the illegal alien overstayed their final deportation order.”

The CBP Home app she mentioned was launched as the opposite of the Biden administration’s now-defunct CBP One app.

“The number of immigrants who have opted to self-deport over the last month using the CBP Home app is over 5,000,” Fox News notes.

It helps that the Trump administration has been promoting self-deportations with fliers targeting illegal aliens.

“Self-deportation is safe,” the flyers read. “Leave on your own terms by picking your departure flight.”

More illegals are self-deporting. They are not waiting to get caught because they know the consequences will be 10 times worse. It’s better to go home and cut your losses. Hopefully, the world now understands to respect our borders. Immigration is a privilege, not a right. pic.twitter.com/sMQ3X6eqOb

— Adam Lowisz (@AdamLowisz) April 8, 2025

President Donald Trump has also personally joined the effort to bump up self-deportations.

“Leave now and self-deport voluntarily,” he said in a video posted to social media last month. “If they do, they could potentially have the opportunity to return legally at some point in the future. Using the CBP home app to leave the United States voluntarily is the safest option for illegal aliens.”

The efforts, particularly the scare efforts, are working so well that a group of young illegal alien men from Venezuela whom The New York Times Miriam Jordan spoke with all reported wanting to leave.

“They see footage of shackled migrants shuffled onto deportation planes,” Jordan reported late last month. “They watch the videos of more than 200 Venezuelan men, accused by the Trump administration of gang affiliation, being flown to a mega-prison in El Salvador.”

“Rather than risk subjecting themselves to that ordeal, they want to leave on their own terms,” the reporting continues.

Speaking with Fox News, America First Legal senior counsel James Rogers argued that this didn’t happen before — the idea of self-deportations used to be mocked — because there was no “credible threat of enforcement.”

“Our nation’s immigration laws impose severe penalties on aliens who are illegally in the country. The only reason there is a large population of illegal immigrants residing in the United States is because prior administrations have failed to enforce these laws passed by Congress,” he said.

“Everyone knows this, including the aliens who have been illegally living here. The current trend of illegal aliens self-deporting proves that even just the credible threat of enforcement can be enough to get many illegal immigrants to comply with our laws and leave the country,” he added.

Kristi Noem says she will force “mass self-deportation” by enforcing laws against illegal aliens that have been ignored for decades.

Including these federal crimes that can be punished with fines or jail time. pic.twitter.com/4vQrdRh89e

— National Conservative (@NatCon2022) April 8, 2025

And it really is working like a charm.

María José Espinosa of the Center for Engagement and Advocacy in the Americas told El Pais that during a recent visit to the border town of Juárez, she discovered illegal aliens who’d stunningly paid smugglers to take them back home.

“There are also individuals who crossed the border and are now requesting to appear before a judge to request voluntary departure from the country,” El Pais notes.

Senior Staff Writer
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V. Saxena is a staff writer for BizPac Review with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University.

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