SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras (AP) – On Monday, the United States deported a total of 68 immigrants from Honduras and Colombia in a government-funded charter flight, marking the Trump administration's first implementation of what is being termed "voluntary deportations." This initiative aims to provide migrants with incentives to return to their home countries, a move that has sparked discussion among immigration experts.
Among the deportees were 38 Hondurans, including 19 children, who arrived in San Pedro Sula with $1,000 debit cards allocated by the U.S. government. Additionally, the migrants were informed they might one day be eligible to apply for legal entry into the United States. The Trump administration has made a promise to significantly increase deportations, and this new program is intended to cater to migrants who might be considering returning home.
Experts believe that the offer of self-deportation is unlikely to attract a large number of migrants. This initiative has been rolled out alongside highly publicized detentions of migrants in the U.S. and the transfer of several Venezuelan migrants to a high-security prison in El Salvador. Kevin Antonio Posadas, a former resident of Houston originally from Tegucigalpa, Honduras, expressed his decision to return home was influenced by the Trump administration's offering. Having lived in the U.S. for three years, he found the self-deportation process easy and straightforward, stating, "You just apply through the CBP Home app and in three days you've got it."
Despite living in the U.S., Posadas had been contemplating a return to Honduras to reconnect with family. He noted that the flight offered a financial benefit by alleviating the cost of returning home. In statements regarding the flight, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem emphasized the importance of taking control of one’s departure through the CBP Home app, warning potential consequences for those who choose not to participate, such as fines, arrests, and deportation.
The flight also included 26 migrants returning to Colombia, and assistance for the returning Honduran migrants did not stop there. The Honduran government pledged additional support, offering $100 in cash along with $200 worth of credit for use at government-run stores selling basic necessities. Among those who returned were four children born in the U.S., as highlighted by Honduran Deputy Foreign Minister Antonio García.
García met the returning migrants at the airport and conveyed that many expressed increasing difficulties living in the U.S. without proper documentation. Concerns about hostility and fear of working were often recounted. Despite this recent flight, the number of Hondurans deported from the U.S. this year remains lower than the figures reported at the same time in the previous year. Wilson Paz, the director of immigration in Honduras, disclosed that approximately 13,500 Hondurans had been deported this year thus far, compared to over 15,000 by this time in 2024.
Paz underscored that while some migrants would consider self-deportation due to a sense that their time in the U.S. might be up, he did not foresee any significant increase in numbers seeking the program. "I don’t think it will be thousands of people who apply for the program," he said. "Our responsibility is to ensure they come back in an orderly fashion and that we support them."
