The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has rolled out an enhanced incentive program to encourage illegal aliens to leave the United States voluntarily.
The program offers a $2,600 stipend plus a free flight home through the CBP “Home” Mobile app.
The DHS initiative builds off a year that has already seen over 675,000 deportations and more than 2 million self-deportations across America.
The program, which expands the “Home for the Holidays” campaign from late 2025, targets eligible illegal aliens who opt for self-deportation rather than facing arrest and a forced removal process.
In December of last year, the DHS was initially only offering a “$1,000 gift” and a free flight home.
The DHS has now laid out the cost savings to taxpayers, stating that: A single enforced deportation averages around $18,245, while the self-deportation option, including the stipend, comes in at just $5,100 – a savings of over $13,000 per person.
“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,” said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
“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,” Noem added.
The CBP “Home” Mobile app aims to streamline that process, allowing users to submit information and arrange travel to leave the country at no cost whatsoever. Participants may also qualify for forgiveness of any civil fines or penalties for overstaying their time in America.
Nearly 100,000 people have already downloaded and used the app since its launch, according to DHS data.
This financial incentive to leave the country on your own is a modern twist on long-standing U.S. efforts to promote self-deportation options.
For example, during the 1950s under President Dwight Eisenhower, “Operation Wetback” – a large-scale border enforcement operation – led to the removal of over 1 million Mexican nationals, many of whom self-deported during an era of heavy immigration patrols and arrests.
According to historical records from the U.S. House of Representatives, ‘Operation Wetback’ had a huge impact specifically on immigration in the southern states that year.
In Texas, for example, more than 63,000 people reportedly returned to Mexico on their own accord, while U.S. officials detained and arrested an additional 42,000 people throughout 1954. Some historians describe Operation Wetback as extremely inhumane, with scholars like Mae Ngai documenting conditions in her book that included deportees being abandoned in the desert without food or water – allegedly leading to nearly 90 deaths from heat stroke – as well as documenting transport methods likened to “eighteenth-century slave ships.”
More recently, the White House reported in early 2026 that the Trump administration’s policies – specifically the mass deportation strategies – have drastically improved Americans’ “quality of life.” The White House report claims that housing prices, crime rates, and the overall job market have all improved as a result of the recent illegal immigration crackdowns.
DHS warns that the $2,600 offer may be temporary, urging illegal aliens who have overstayed their welcome in America to act quickly.
