United States: Immigrants residing in the US without legal authorization can now utilize a new program released by the Trump administration that enables them to depart from the country voluntarily instead of being apprehended or detained, as reported by Reuters.
Through the U.S. Customs and Border Protection app named CBP Home, users can indicate their decision to leave the country via the “intent to depart” feature.
New “Intent to Depart” Feature Introduced
“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,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. “If they don’t, we will find them, we will deport them, and they will never return.”
Trump’s Crackdown on Undocumented Immigrants Intensifies
As a Republican, President Trump has declared his mission to remove an unprecedented number of undocumented immigrants from American soil. The deportation numbers released by Trump during his first months surpassed average monthly deportations during Democrat Joe Biden’s fiscal year 2024 administration, while Biden deported a significant portion of border-crossing undocumented immigrants.
The Trump administration has introduced regulatory measures along with other actions that target undocumented immigrants residing in the United States.
Under a regulation implemented by the Trump administration upcoming on April 11 people without legal status must register with federal authorities or risk facing fines couple with potential jail detention.
CBP Home Replaces Biden-Era Immigration App
CBP Home functions as the successor application to CBP One, which the Biden Administration launched. The application introduced during Biden’s presidency permitted approximately one million Mexican migrants to book entry appointments to lawful border ports.
The Republicans expressed opposition to the Biden administration’s program, which they believed promoted large-scale immigration through insufficient migrant screening, as reported by Reuters.
Trump terminated CBP One just hours after assuming office, which left waiting migrants with unresolved appointments without any clarity about their follow-up process.