The Trump administration is floating a new policy that would impose a $998 daily fine on migrants residing in the U.S. illegally who decline to voluntarily leave the country.
Under the proposed rule, migrants who fail to pay the fines could also have their property seized. The initiative mirrors a similar effort from 2018, during President Trump’s first term, and is reportedly grounded in a 1996 immigration statute, according to a Reuters report.
Back in 2018, the enforcement of the law was far more targeted. That year, the Trump administration issued fines to nine undocumented migrants who had taken refuge in churches. In those cases, each individual faced penalties amounting to $60,000.
When Joe Biden entered the White House in 2021, his administration quickly scrapped the policy.
Reuters reports that Trump adviser Stephen Miller has advocated for reviving the measure, suggesting that fines and property seizures could be used as leverage to encourage illegal migrants to leave the country on their own.
However, the memo cited by Reuters from Customs and Border Protection indicates that a mechanism for managing, processing, and collecting the fines doesn’t currently exist. Implementing the plan would likely require the hiring of hundreds of additional paralegals to handle the administrative burden.
So far, there has been no official timeline announced for when the proposal might be put into action, signaling that the plan is still in the development stage.
If enacted, the policy could accelerate a trend that’s already underway: voluntary departures by undocumented migrants. Some are reportedly seeking the assistance of the same smugglers who originally brought them into the country to now guide them out.
Texas-based reporter Alfredo Corchado shared during a recent event at the Council on Foreign Relations that smugglers, or “coyotes,” have started marketing “return trips” for migrants. He said, “They’re offering these packages where you can just go back home. Not all of them are taking it; I mean, many [are].”
This development is happening alongside the broader national enforcement efforts led by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which has already detained and deported more than 100,000 individuals in recent months. In tandem, the president has dismantled Joe Biden’s controversial CHNV program, which allowed nationals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to enter the U.S. with minimal screening.
Communities across America are beginning to see signs of shrinking undocumented populations. Charleroi, Pennsylvania — once overwhelmed by a large influx of Haitian migrants — is reportedly seeing a gradual reduction in its illegal immigrant population, WESA radio reported.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has started notifying migrants who were granted temporary protections under Biden’s CHNV program that their status has expired and they are now expected to return to their home countries.
Those who cannot adjust their status to lawful residency are being informed they face swift deportation. According to a letter obtained by the Louisville Courier Journal, the notice reads, “Any decision to revoke your employment authorization is final and no appeal should lie from the decision to revoke your employment authorization.”
{Matzav.com}