Trump Admin Fining Migrants Thousands to Recoup Deportation Costs

20, 2025, and March 18 of this year

Officials did not immediately disclose how many recipients had actually paid the penalties, which averaged roughly $553,000 per person.

The proposed fines would apply to individuals ordered removed “in absentia,” meaning they received final deportation orders after failing to appear for immigration court hearings.

Last year, immigration judges issued more than 300,000 in absentia removal orders, and roughly 23,670 of those individuals were later detained and placed into deportation proceedings

Those potentially subject to the new penalties include migrants who initially entered the United States legally but overstayed student or tourist visas, as well as individuals who entered under asylum claims but were later ordered removed after their cases were denied.

Advocacy groups for immigrants argue that the new policy is part of a deliberate effort by the Trump administration to criminalize nearly all migrants in the United States, including those who came lawfully under previous presidential administrations.