More People Deported From Inside U.S. Than at Border for First Time in a Decade: Report

For the first time since at least 2014, immigration removals from inside the United States have surpassed deportations at the border, according to a new report released October 30 by the Migration Policy Institute (MPI).

The report estimates approximately 340,000 removals in fiscal year 2025, including both formal orders of removal and voluntary departures. Projections suggest total deportations could reach about 600,000 by the end of calendar year 2025—short of both the 685,000 removals recorded under the Biden administration in fiscal year 2024 and the Trump administration's stated goal of 1 million.

MPI reports that unauthorized migration at the U.S.-Mexico border "plunged dramatically" during FY 2025, falling from 2.1 million encounters in FY 2024 to about 444,000. This shift enabled officials to redirect Border Patrol agents to interior cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago, contributing to the increase in interior enforcement.

The report also explains that the decline in border arrivals, combined with the return of "nationalities that are easier to turn back because of existing repatriation agreements," allowed the administration to "direct its focus to immigration enforcement in the U.S. interior."

ICE deportations doubled from roughly 600 per day in January to 1,200 per day by June, the report noted, adding that most immigrants held in detention are now being removed directly from custody.

The report states that deportations conducted by ICE from U.S. communities exceeded Border Patrol apprehensions of migrants crossing without authorization. MPI described this as a turning point, noting it was "the first time since at least FY 2014" that interior deportations outnumbered border arrests.

The administration has expanded detention capacity, increased use of fast-track removal procedures, and coordinated more closely with state and local law enforcement agencies. The report also noted that the U.S. military has been used to support mass-removal operations and that new agreements have facilitated repatriations to third countries.

Even so, tracking enforcement trends has become more difficult. MPI said "only selective statistics have been made public," with detailed ICE and CBP datasets not updated since late 2024. "It has become increasingly complicated to track results because only selective statistics have been made public," MPI wrote, adding that a return to regular reporting "could improve the public's understanding of current immigration enforcement activities" and help state and local governments respond to impacts.

The report also highlights shifting migrant demographics. Unauthorized border crossers once again consist primarily of single men from Mexico and unaccompanied children from Central America—patterns last dominant more than a decade ago. As border encounters fell, some migrants reportedly turned back toward South America through Panama, according to news reports cited in the MPI analysis.