Trump ready to give USD 1,000 for travel costs to illegal immigrants returning home, via his custom-built app, CBP Home.

WASHINGTON – Donald Trump administration has launched an incentive programme offering USD 1,000 per person to facilitate illegal immigrants to voluntarily leave the United States.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that the incentive would be granted if illegal immigrants report their departure through the CBP Home app.

According to the official statement, the stipend will be paid after the immigrants' departure to their country of origin is verified via the app.

The application uses biometric data, personal documents, facial recognition, and geolocation as evidence of departure. Immigrants must be at least 5 kilometres outside US territory to activate the verification feature.

This initiative is part of the Trump administration’s strategy to cut deportation costs, which currently stand at USD 17,121 per person. DHS expects the programme to reduce expenses by up to 70%, despite still providing cash incentives to migrants.

Kristi Noem, Secretary of DHS, said voluntary deportation is the safest, most efficient, and cost-effective way to leave the US without the risk of detention.

CBP Home is a modified version of CBP One, a similar app used during the Biden era to manage the legal entry of asylum seekers into the US.

The Trump administration has invested USD 200 million into the development of this new app, along with launching an advertising campaign in English and Spanish, broadcast across the US and Mexico.

According to data from Appfigures, the app has been downloaded around 300,000 times since early 2025, with an average of 1,500 downloads per day.

The Migration Policy Institute said that at least 5,000 migrants have expressed their willingness to return home voluntarily through the app.

DHS also stated that those who show serious intent to return to their country via the app would receive lower priority in the detention and forced deportation process. Voluntary return is also said to open legal pathways for future re-entry into the US for undocumented migrants, though this remains uncertain.

Kathleen Bush-Joseph of the Migration Policy Institute and Heidi Altman of the National Immigration Law Center stressed that the chance of legal re-entry is slim for those who leave the US under this programme.

They also warned that the policy could carry significant moral, political, and economic costs by promoting family separation. (EF/KR/ZH)