The Department of Homeland Security recently released a holiday ad relaying a familiar message with a tinge of festive nostalgia.
Accompanied by crooner Perry Como’s Christmas classic, “Home for the Holidays,” a black-and-white montage showed people grabbing what appeared to be gifts for loved ones — stuffed animals and playing cards — before they stepped onto planes.
“This holiday season, give yourself the gift of home with the CBP Home app,” read the ad’s caption.
Since President Donald Trump returned to the White House — and implemented his mass deportation agenda — the CBP Home app has been touted by administration officials as a “dignified” way for immigrants to self-deport.
Immigrants without criminal convictions are eligible to use the app in exchange for a $1,000 “stipend,” free airfare, and avoiding encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to DHS.
Once a user downloads the CBP Home app, they choose the language they want to use, and then can select on one of two choices: “I’m Ready to Leave the U.S.” or “Verify I Left the U.S.” The user then fills out their personal information, takes a selfie, and then submits that information. The app then asks users if they want to add others to their “group.” At the end of the prompts, a message pops up saying “someone will reach out to you soon” and that the user will receive an email about next steps. The app also touts the $1,000 “exit bonus.”
But immigration law experts warn that many migrants are being directed towards the app without a full understanding that self-deportation is not risk-free.
Desires to avoid “horrific” conditions at detention centers, uncertain outcomes in lengthy immigration cases, and unpredictable, frightening ICE raids appear to be fueling self-deportations, but using the app may still result in immigrants being detained by federal agents and separated from family members for long periods, legal experts say.
In some cases, immigrants may never be allowed to return to the U.S.
The government has spent more than $200 million to advertise CBP Home — and nearly 38,000 people have used the app to leave the U.S. from March, when the self-deportation feature launched, up to November 25, according to internal DHS data seen by The Independent.
“Self-deportation is a safe and dignified way for lawbreakers who are here illegally to leave,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement.
Not only do self-deportations boost Trump’s numbers – he has said he wants 1 million immigrants out of the country each year – but the administration has argued that the strategy is saving taxpayers money. The government spends $3,500 per individual self-deportation, the DHS spokesperson said. That marks “80 percent savings” on the $17,000 that the government spends on arresting, detaining and removing a person, the official added.
But critics argue there are other prices attached, both financial and personal, that the administration’s cost analysis doesn’t appear to take into account.
For one, immigrants are thought to contribute nearly $580 billion per year in taxes.
