The number of illegal immigrants voluntarily leaving the U.S. has sharply increased under President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement policies, according to newly reported data cited by The Washington Post.
The report said immigration judges issued more than 80,000 voluntary departure orders between January 2025 and March 2026 to migrants who agreed to leave the country on their own terms.
Voluntary departure allows migrants to leave the U.S. without receiving formal deportation orders, which can carry long-term or permanent restrictions on returning to the country legally.
According to the report, the number of migrants abandoning immigration claims and requesting voluntary departure is more than seven times higher than during the final 15 months of former President Joe Biden’s administration.
During that earlier period, approximately 11,400 migrants reportedly accepted voluntary departure agreements rather than continuing immigration court proceedings involving asylum or residency claims.
The figures were compiled using data released by the Vera Institute of Justice, an immigration advocacy organization whose federal funding was reduced in 2025.
More than 70% of migrants granted voluntary departure under Trump’s current administration were reportedly being held in immigration detention facilities when they agreed to leave the country.
Officials with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement reportedly support voluntary departure agreements because they allow faster removals and free detention space for additional immigration cases.
Migrants may also agree to voluntary departure because it can preserve the possibility of future legal reentry into the US compared with formal deportation proceedings and removal orders.
The report also stated that many additional migrants are believed to be quietly leaving the country without formally notifying federal immigration authorities or courts about their departures.
Trump administration officials have argued the increase reflects success in broader efforts to reduce illegal immigration and accelerate removals through stricter border and detention policies.
The rise in voluntary departures follows the administration’s decision to scale back longstanding practices allowing many detained migrants to seek release while immigration cases continued through the courts, per the Conservative Brief.
Under prior policies used by multiple administrations since 1990, migrants were often released from detention and allowed to work in the US while challenging deportation proceedings.
Immigration advocacy organizations have challenged new detention policies and pushed federal courts to restore broader access to bond hearings for detained migrants seeking release.
Federal appeals courts have issued conflicting rulings involving the administration’s authority to limit bond hearings, setting up legal disputes that could eventually reach the Supreme Court of the United States.
The Vera Institute argued in a statement that voluntary departure remains an undesirable outcome for many migrants because it requires leaving the US without guarantees of being allowed to legally return in the future.
