1 week ago
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The Trump administration is planning a hefty fine for migrants if they refuse to leave the United States after being cleared for deportation, according to a report.
In the latest push in President Donald Trump’s efforts to achieve the “largest deportation operation” in American history, immigrants will be fined up to $998 a day if they fail to leave the U.S., according to documents obtained by Reuters. If they don’t pay the fine, their property could be seized, the potential plans say.
“Illegal aliens should use the CBP Home app to self-deport and leave the country now. If they don’t, they will face the consequences. This includes a fine of $998 per day for every day that the illegal alien overstayed their final deportation order,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told The Independent in a statement. “The safest option for illegal aliens is to self-deport.”
The plans stem from a 1996 federal law that states that any immigrant subject to a “final order of removal” who “willfully fails or refuses” to leave the U.S. can face a civil penalty of “not more than $500” each day.
However, the administration proposed applying the penalties retroactively for up to five years, which could result in fines of more than $1 million, a senior Trump official told the outlet.
The report comes one week after the Department of Homeland Security issued a warning for illegal immigrants, urging them to “self-deport” before the agency finds them and deports them. People who self-deport have the ability to legally enter the U.S. at a later date, while those deported can not return.
The warning included the threat of a $998 per-day fine as well as a $1,000 to $5,000 fine “if you fail to self-deport after claiming that you will” or jail time.
These proposed fines could be unbearable for almost one-third of the unauthorized migrants; 26 percent of unauthorized migrants have family incomes that fall below the poverty line, a 2019 study from the Migration Policy Institute found.
Customs and Border Protection would be responsible for issuing these penalties and seizing assets, Reuters reported.
During his first term, Trump used the 1996 law in 2018 against nine immigrants who failed to leave the U.S. after deportation orders, ordering them to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars. His administration later rescinded most of the fines or pursued smaller amounts.
The news comes one day after the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to use a 1798 wartime law to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members. The nation’s highest court on Monday also temporarily blocked a federal judge’s order requiring Trump to bring back an illegally deported Maryland father who was sent to an El Salvador prison.
