DHS increases offer for undocumented migrants to $3,000 if they voluntarily leave by end of 2025 [View all]

Source: CBS News

December 22, 2025 / 7:00 AM EST


The Department of Homeland Security has tripled its "exit bonus" for undocumented migrants who voluntarily depart the United States through self-deportation, increasing the financial incentive from $1,000 to $3,000 for those who register with the U.S. government and depart the country by the end of the calendar year.

DHS says all qualified participants who leave by Dec. 31, 2025, will also receive free airfare to their home countries and be waived of certain civil fines or penalties tied to remaining illegally in the U.S., if they voluntarily self-deport using the rebranded CBP Home app. The smartphone app is modeled off the Biden administration's CBP One platform.

Under the Trump administration's policy, migrants are instructed to use the platform to signal their intent to depart. If determined to be eligible, DHS officials say they will receive travel assistance plus the $3,000 paid stipend once the U.S. government confirms the individual has left the country. In a statement to CBS News, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says that those who do not take advantage of the temporary incentive will be "found," "arrested" and "never return" to the U.S.

The CBP One app was originally built under the previous administration to schedule asylum appointments, but under the Trump administration's mass deportation agenda, it has been remodeled under a voluntary departure framework to permit those without lawful status to track their exit.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dhs-undocumented-migrants-self-deportation-offer-increased/