President Donald Trump announced Monday a new plan aimed at encouraging illegal immigrants to self-deport, the program offers a $1000 stipend and travel assistance to those who voluntarily leave the United States using a new feature on the CBP Home mobile app.
According to DHS, participants who confirm their return to their home country through the app will receive the payment after verification.
DHS has not provided specific details about how the payments will be delivered or the full verification process. However, spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said users must submit personal information, documents, facial images, and geolocation data through the app.
“The alien must be at least three miles outside of the United States to successfully utilize this feature,” she explained, adding that facial recognition is required for verification.
Trump‘s plans for mass deportations have been hindered by multiple court challenges and stretched resources at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The administration began encouraging those without legal status to self-deport in early March.
The U.S. has run a self-deport program before, in 2008, then called Operation Self Departure. It sought to incentivize 457,000 undocumented immigrants from five cities to leave the country, but only eight people took part.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called the new approach “the best, safest, and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest.” According to DHS, each formal deportation costs taxpayers an average of $17,121, while the new self-deportation program could reduce that cost by 70%, even after accounting for the stipend.
The program has already seen some uptake. The Migration Policy Institute reports that about 5,000 individuals have used the app to declare their intent to self-deport.
Data from analytics firm Appfigures shows the CBP Home app has been downloaded roughly 300,000 times since January 2025, averaging about 1,500 downloads per day.
The Trump administration repurposed the Biden-era CBP One app into CBP Home in March, redesigning it to include a self-deportation feature. The government has invested $200 million into the app’s redevelopment and marketing, including television ads featuring Secretary Noem aired in both English and Spanish across the U.S. and Mexico.
As part of the rollout, DHS said undocumented immigrants who declare their intent to depart through the app will be deprioritized for arrest and detention, provided they show they are actively working toward leaving. The agency also stated that using the self-deportation program “may help preserve the option” for legal reentry in the future.
However, immigration experts remain skeptical. Kathleen Bush-Joseph of the Migration Policy Institute warned the language used by DHS offers no guarantees.
Heidi Altman, policy director at the National Immigration Law Center, called the program potentially coercive, adding that many individuals who leave may never be eligible to return legally.