In fiscal year 2024, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) saw a dramatic surge in deportations, reaching levels not seen in a decade. According to a government report released Thursday, ICE deported over 271,000 unauthorized immigrants, marking the highest total since 2014 and surpassing the previous record set under the Trump administration in 2019. This sharp increase in deportations has captured the public's attention as it underscores the Biden administration's approach to border control in its final year in office.
For a bit of context, ICE's deportation numbers in fiscal year 2019 peaked at 267,000, during the Trump administration, a record that many thought would stand for years. However, the 2024 figures have eclipsed that by a significant margin, demonstrating just how much the situation has escalated. The last time deportations hit this level was in 2014 under the Obama administration, when the agency carried out 316,000 deportations. This year’s numbers are a stark reminder of how rapidly things can change in the world of immigration enforcement.
The year 2021, which included the early months of the Biden presidency, saw an unprecedented dip in deportations, with ICE sending back only about 59,000 individuals. This marked a record low for the agency since its founding 21 years ago. Several factors contributed to this drastic reduction, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the Biden administration’s more lenient stance toward unauthorized immigrants who were not considered national security threats, serious criminals, or recent border crossers. At the time, new policies were enacted to shield most unauthorized immigrants from deportation, contributing to a dramatic decline in removals.
However, by 2022, deportations began to pick up again, reaching 72,000, and by fiscal year 2023, the number surged to 143,000. The increase was largely a response to the rising number of migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border. As COVID-19 restrictions eased, the Biden administration relied less on Title 42, a pandemic-era policy that allowed for the expulsion of migrants without formal deportation. These expulsions weren’t officially counted as deportations, which explains the significant jump in removals seen over the past year.
The increase in deportations in 2024, however, wasn’t just about more migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. ICE’s efforts to streamline the deportation process played a crucial role. The agency worked to improve the efficiency of its operations, which involved increasing deportation flights to Latin America—long the primary source of unauthorized immigrants. But it didn’t stop there. ICE also expanded its reach to countries in Africa and Asia, including China, which had not accepted U.S. deportations for several years. This global outreach helped ensure that deportations were carried out more quickly and efficiently, marking a significant shift in the agency's strategy.
In 2024, the vast majority of deportations—about 82%—were migrants who had been apprehended by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the U.S.-Mexico border. The remaining deportations involved individuals arrested by ICE within the United States, either in jails or during operations in local communities. It's important to note that these statistics don’t account for the removals and returns of migrants carried out by Border Patrol at the U.S.-Mexico border. Those numbers also increased in 2024, fueled by President Biden’s executive order limiting asylum and Mexico's enhanced efforts to intercept migrants before they reached the U.S.
Despite these increases in deportations, the Biden administration's efforts are only part of the picture. Looking ahead to the incoming Trump administration, there’s still a mountain of work ahead for ICE. At the end of fiscal year 2024, ICE's so-called non-detained docket, which tracks cases of immigrants facing deportation, had ballooned to nearly 7.7 million cases. This marks a massive increase from the 3.3 million cases recorded just a few years earlier at the end of fiscal year 2020. This surge is primarily due to the Biden administration's record releases of migrants at the border before the asylum restrictions were imposed in June 2024.
So, what’s next for the Trump administration? As President-elect Trump prepares to take office on January 20, he has promised a sweeping deportation campaign. Incoming border czar Tom Homan has made it clear that ICE will prioritize individuals with criminal records and the estimated 1.4 million people with pending deportation orders. But the Trump administration’s stance is even broader—officials have stressed that no one living in the country illegally will be exempt from deportation.
To execute such a monumental operation, ICE will need substantial increases in resources and manpower. Currently, the agency has 41,000 detention beds and approximately 6,000 deportation officers, far from the scale needed to carry out the Trump administration’s ambitious goals. In fact, estimates show that over 11 million unauthorized immigrants were living in the U.S. as of early 2022. To address this issue, Homan has suggested enlisting the Department of Defense to assist ICE, potentially using military aircraft to carry out deportations. Additionally, White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller has floated the idea of deputizing National Guard soldiers to help arrest and deport unauthorized immigrants.
In addition to the logistical challenges, the incoming administration will also have to deal with the significant political and legal hurdles that accompany mass deportation efforts. Such a strategy will undoubtedly be met with resistance from advocacy groups, immigrant communities, and even some state governments. Critics argue that large-scale deportations would place an undue strain on the country’s legal and detention systems, not to mention the emotional and societal toll of separating families.
Nevertheless, the dramatic rise in deportations in 2024 reflects a clear shift in U.S. immigration policy, with the Biden administration taking steps to tighten enforcement. Whether or not the Trump administration will be able to follow through on its ambitious plans for mass deportations remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: Immigration in America is a dynamic issue, with each year bringing new developments and challenges.
With nearly 8 million immigration cases waiting in the wings, and a newly elected administration poised to ramp up deportation efforts, the coming years promise to be critical in shaping the future of U.S. immigration policy. As the country grapples with the complexities of border security, deportation, and immigration reform, there’s no doubt that these discussions will remain front and center in American politics. The question now is how the nation will balance enforcement with compassion, security with human rights, and the rule of law with the country’s deeply rooted immigrant identity.
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