The Trump administration today announced what it described as “a historic opportunity” for undocumented immigrants: It is offering a cash stipend of $1,000 and a flight home for anyone willing to voluntarily leave the United States. Immigrants who want to take the offer can use the CBP Home app to self-deport.
“Even with the cost of the stipend, it is projected that the use of CBP Home will decrease the costs of a deportation by around 70 percent,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a press release. “Currently the average cost to arrest, detain, and remove an illegal alien is $17,121.”
The administration says some migrants have already started accepting the offer, with one person receiving a ticket from Chicago to Honduras and other tickets booked for this week and next. The administration said last week that it had deported 139,000 people since President Trump’s inauguration, but immigration experts questioned that number.