The United States’ Immigration and Customs Enforcement defines self-deportation as “the act of leaving the U.S. on your own initiative when you’re illegally present” (ICE). The ICE website describes self-deportation as a logical solution, and presents it as an easy choice: “If you’re illegally present in the U.S., you don’t have to — and shouldn’t — wait for ICE officials to arrest you. Instead, you can leave on your own terms” (ICE). The only other option provided for those ICE wants to deport is detainment, where you may be waiting for several months. Similarly, the website describes the consequences you may experience if you don’t decide to self-deport: “If ICE officials arrest you, there’s no going back — you may not have time to get your affairs in order, gather your belongings, or even say goodbye to the people you care about” (ICE). Self-deportation is not a feasible solution for all, however, and some of the sacrifices that result from this choice are detailed in the following sections.

Trump’s self-deportation campaign and his goal of 1 million deportations a year have seen an increase in “encouragement” of self-deportation from the government in the form of high-profile arrests, increased ICE check-ins, heavy fines, and word of the poor conditions in detention centers, including the possibility of removal to a third country. Throughout Trump’s administration, ICE arrests have dramatically increased, and “conditions in detention have reportedly deteriorated, with overcrowding leading to health concerns” (MPI). The Migration Policy Institute notes that this campaign has created “clear disincentives for choosing to stay: possible arrest, detention and deportation, fines, and confiscation of bank accounts, homes, vehicles, and other personal property” (MPI). Along with these threats, the campaign proposes self-deportation as an alternative option. For instance, in early 2025, the Department of Homeland Security announced the CBP Home App, which offers $1,000, a free flight home, and the option to return legally one day. Upon the release of the app, Secretary of the DHS, Kristi Noem said, “The CBP Home App gives aliens the option to leave now, and self-deport, so they may still have the opportunity to return legally in the future and live the American dream… If they don’t, we will find them, we will deport them, and they will never return” (Homeland Security). With the combined encouragement for self-deportation and the dangers presented to staying in the U.S., the government aims to incite fear in the people they don’t want in the country, and the Migration Policy Institute states, “Leaving becomes worthwhile only when staying becomes undesirable or unbearable” (MPI).