The Department of Homeland Security more than doubled the cash incentive for illegal immigrants to leave the United States through a self-deportation process, raising the offer from $1,000 to $2,600.
Illegal immigrants who voluntarily self-deport through the CBP Home app will receive the increased stipend and a free flight home, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Wednesday.
“Since January 2025, 2.2 million illegal aliens have voluntarily self-deported and tens of thousands have used the CBP Home program. To celebrate one year of this administration, the U.S. taxpayer is generously increasing the incentive to leave voluntarily for those in this country illegally – offering a $2,600 exit bonus,” Noem said in a statement the day after the one-year mark of President Donald Trump‘s return to office.
The offer is only temporary and “may not last long,” DHS noted.
The announcement is similar to one made last month, right before Christmas. At the time, DHS raised the $1,000 stipend to $3,000 as part of its “home for the holidays” campaign.
In May, the department first announced the $1,000 stipends for illegal immigrants who self-deported through CBP Home.
Those who use the app can qualify for forgiveness of any civil fines or penalties issued for previously refusing to leave the country.
Noem suggested illegal immigrants who take advantage of the latest opportunity can eventually return to the U.S. legally if they leave now. She said as much directly last month. On the other hand, those who are detained and deported will be shut out completely.
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“Illegal aliens should take advantage of this gift and self-deport because if they don’t, we will find them, we will arrest them, and they will never return,” she warned.
DHS said the $2,600 stipend saves U.S. taxpayers over $13,000 per illegal immigrant, comparing the lower cost of a single self-deportation to the cost of a single enforced deportation. The department also said there have been over 100,000 users of the CBP Home app since it launched last March.
