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  1. United States
  2. ›
  3. Immigration & integration

Deportations, detention, border: US immigration policy in figures

The Trump administration has made deportations a priority, and immigration was among the issues of the 3 November 2026 midterm elections, won by the Democrats in both chambers. Border encounters, detention, removals, immigration courts, green cards and refugees: what the federal agencies publish.

Citoyen·Data as of Nov 12, 2026

Scope: United States. Official files from CBP, ICE, DHS (Office of Homeland Security Statistics) and the Department of Justice (EOIR). Federal fiscal years from October to September, labelled by the year they end.

This dossier is updated at least once a quarter with the new figures. Follow it to get a notification at each update.

Key points

Southwest border encounters11,964in Sep. 2026, against 301,981 at the peak (Dec. 2023)
People in detention (daily average)59,425Jun. 2026, against 40,203 in Jan. 2025
Cases pending before the immigration courts3,300,793end of fiscal year 2026
Refugees resettled38,070fiscal year 2025, against 100,030 a year earlier
  • The southwest border at its lowest. CBP recorded 139,983 encounters in fiscal year 2026, 94% fewer than at the 2023 peak (2,475,669). The latest month counts 11,964, against 301,981 in Dec. 2023.
  • Detention has risen sharply. ICE held an average of 40,203 people a day in Jan. 2025 and 71,937 in Jan. 2026, 79% more; the figure came back down to 59,425 in Jun. 2026.
  • Recent removals are not published. DHS counted 329,990 removals in fiscal year 2024, but its monthly tables stop in Nov. 2024. ICE publishes its own counts, with another scope and a definition changed in 2025: they are not joined to this series.
  • The immigration court backlog is falling for a second year. 3,300,793 cases were pending at the end of fiscal year 2026, 16% below the 2024 record (3,924,917), but more than three times the 2017 level (975,999).
  • Refugee resettlement has collapsed: 38,070 arrivals in fiscal year 2025, against 100,030 the year before, and only 320 in the latest quarter. Permanent legal immigration remains high: 1,320,080 green cards and 894,700 naturalisations in fiscal year 2025.
How to read these figures

CBP encounters add up Border Patrol apprehensions between ports of entry and people found inadmissible at ports of entry, on the southwest border. They count events, not people: the same person can be encountered several times. Title 42 expulsions (March 2020 to May 2023) are included. Detention is the average population held each day by ICE, whichever agency made the arrest; two months are missing at the source.

DHS removals are compulsory removals under Title 8, excluding returns and Title 42 expulsions; the Office of Homeland Security Statistics has not published its monthly tables since January 2025. The court backlog counts the cases pending before immigration judges at the end of the fiscal year. Green cards, naturalisations and refugees come from the DHS quarterly tables, rounded to the nearest ten.

1. The southwest border

Encounters at the border with Mexico reached records between 2021 and 2024, then collapsed in early 2025. Fiscal year 2025 mixes four months of the previous administration and eight months of the new one.

Southwest border encounters, each month

Border Patrol apprehensions and people found inadmissible at ports of entry. Average of the latest twelve months: 11,665.

Source:U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Show the chart data
PeriodEncounters
Oct. 201945,139
Nov. 201942,643
Dec. 201940,565
Jan. 202036,585
Feb. 202036,687
Mar. 202034,460
Apr. 202017,106
May 202023,237
Jun. 202033,049
Jul. 202040,929
Aug. 202050,014
Sep. 202057,674
Oct. 202071,929
Nov. 202072,113
Dec. 202073,994
Jan. 202178,414
Feb. 2021101,099
Mar. 2021173,277
Apr. 2021178,795
May 2021180,597
Jun. 2021189,034
Jul. 2021213,593
Aug. 2021209,840
Sep. 2021192,001
Oct. 2021164,837
Nov. 2021174,845
Dec. 2021179,253
Jan. 2022154,874
Feb. 2022166,010
Mar. 2022222,574
Apr. 2022235,785
May 2022241,136
Jun. 2022207,834
Jul. 2022200,162
Aug. 2022204,087
Sep. 2022227,547
Oct. 2022231,529
Nov. 2022235,173
Dec. 2022252,315
Jan. 2023157,358
Feb. 2023156,630
Mar. 2023193,249
Apr. 2023211,992
May 2023206,690
Jun. 2023144,556
Jul. 2023183,479
Aug. 2023232,963
Sep. 2023269,735
Oct. 2023240,927
Nov. 2023242,399
Dec. 2023301,981
Jan. 2024176,195
Feb. 2024189,913
Mar. 2024189,359
Apr. 2024179,737
May 2024170,716
Jun. 2024130,415
Jul. 2024104,100
Aug. 2024107,473
Sep. 2024101,790
Oct. 2024106,316
Nov. 202494,183
Dec. 202496,033
Jan. 202561,445
Feb. 202511,710
Mar. 202511,011
Apr. 202512,023
May 202512,450
Jun. 20259,300
Jul. 20257,822
Aug. 20259,731
Sep. 202511,647
Oct. 202511,703
Nov. 202510,960
Dec. 20259,992
Jan. 20269,730
Feb. 20269,613
Mar. 202611,736
Apr. 202612,859
May 202613,544
Jun. 202612,904
Jul. 202612,732
Aug. 202612,246
Sep. 202611,964

Southwest border encounters, by fiscal year

Complete fiscal years (October to September).

Source:U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Show the chart data
PeriodEncounters
2020458,088
20211,734,686
20222,378,944
20232,475,669
20242,135,005
2025443,671
2026139,983

2. Detention and removals

The population held by ICE rose markedly from February 2025. DHS removals, on the other hand, have not been published since the end of 2024.

People held by ICE, daily average by month

Average population in detention each day of the month. Two months are missing at the source.

Source:U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Show the chart data
PeriodPeople held
Oct. 201845,584
Nov. 201846,202
Dec. 201848,783
Jan. 201946,947
Feb. 201948,593
Mar. 201948,958
Apr. 201949,173
May 201951,823
Jun. 201954,254
Jul. 201954,220
Aug. 201955,239
Sep. 201952,091
Oct. 201950,218
Nov. 201946,171
Dec. 201942,751
Jan. 202041,115
Feb. 202039,313
Mar. 202037,688
Apr. 202031,823
May 202027,189
Jun. 202024,204
Jul. 202022,549
Aug. 202021,397
Sep. 202020,227
Oct. 202018,744
Nov. 202016,870
Dec. 202016,127
Jan. 202115,097
Feb. 202114,084
Mar. 202114,148
Apr. 202115,558
May 202120,960
Jun. 202126,196
Jul. 202127,056
Aug. 202125,162
Sep. 2021–
Oct. 202122,799
Nov. 202123,337
Dec. 202121,569
Jan. 202221,455
Feb. 202219,770
Mar. 202219,945
Apr. 202219,698
May 202223,791
Jun. 202224,300
Jul. 202223,685
Aug. 202225,165
Sep. 202225,883
Oct. 202228,831
Nov. 202230,284
Dec. 202224,637
Jan. 202322,180
Feb. 202326,740
Mar. 202327,693
Apr. 202325,282
May 202325,546
Jun. 202330,194
Jul. 202331,123
Aug. 202331,340
Sep. 202335,742
Oct. 202338,522
Nov. 202339,201
Dec. 202337,006
Jan. 202438,194
Feb. 202439,080
Mar. 202438,372
Apr. 202435,069
May 202437,222
Jun. 202438,265
Jul. 202437,161
Aug. 202436,664
Sep. 202437,983
Oct. 202438,712
Nov. 202438,990
Dec. 202439,135
Jan. 202540,203
Feb. 202543,112
Mar. 202547,671
Apr. 202549,499
May 202550,314
Jun. 202557,393
Jul. 202558,317
Aug. 202560,930
Sep. 2025–
Oct. 202563,189
Nov. 202566,620
Dec. 202569,542
Jan. 202671,937
Feb. 202668,224
Mar. 202663,256
Apr. 202659,862
May 202658,192
Jun. 202659,425

DHS removals, by fiscal year

Compulsory removals (Title 8), all DHS components. Discontinued series: latest data in Nov. 2024.

Source:DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics

Show the chart data
PeriodRemovals
2014404,700
2015323,670
2016331,540
2017286,660
2018327,240
2019347,230
2020234,340
202185,100
2022102,760
2023177,540
2024329,990

3. The immigration courts

The number of cases pending before immigration judges quadrupled between 2017 and 2024. It has been falling since, without returning to pre-2020 levels.

Cases pending before the immigration courts

Stock at the end of the fiscal year, according to EOIR (Department of Justice).

Source:Executive Office for Immigration Review (DOJ)

Show the chart data
PeriodPending cases
2017975,999
20181,108,323
20191,391,389
20201,551,999
20211,694,256
20222,105,300
20232,811,569
20243,924,917
20253,722,534
20263,300,793

4. Legal immigration

Green cards and naturalisations remain at high levels. Arrivals of resettled refugees, which had peaked in 2024, have been close to zero since the programme was suspended in 2025.

Green cards and naturalisations, by fiscal year

People granted lawful permanent resident status; people naturalised. Complete fiscal years.

  • Naturalisations
  • Green cards

Source:DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics

Show the chart data
PeriodGreen cardsNaturalisations
20161,183,505753,060
20171,127,167707,265
20181,096,611761,901
20191,031,765843,593
2020707,362628,254
2021740,002813,862
20221,018,004967,130
20231,173,640877,770
20241,356,760818,150
20251,320,080894,700

Refugees resettled, by fiscal year

Arrivals under the federal resettlement programme. Latest quarter (Q3 2025): 320.

Source:DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics

Show the chart data
PeriodRefugees resettled
201684,988
201753,691
201822,405
201929,916
202011,814
202111,454
202225,465
202360,020
2024100,030
202538,070

What we know, what we don’t

What the figures establish

  • Southwest border encounters have been at the lowest level of the series since early 2025.
  • The population held by ICE rose sharply in 2025, before partly falling back in 2026.
  • Arrivals of resettled refugees collapsed in 2025.

What they don’t tell

  • The number of removals in 2025 and 2026 on the DHS scope: its monthly series has not been published since January 2025.
  • The share of people who cross the border without being encountered, which these series do not measure.
  • The causes of the changes: these series do not measure the specific effect of decisions by the administration, the courts or the situation in the countries of origin.

Stay up to date

This dossier is updated at least once a quarter with the new figures. Follow it to get a notification at each update.

Sources

Series downloaded from their producers on Nov 12, 2026, the snapshot date. Only published periods are used: no projection.

  • DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics Immigration enforcement monthly tables: total removals
  • DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics Legal immigration and adjustment of status report (green cards, naturalisations, refugee arrivals)
  • Executive Office for Immigration Review (DOJ) Adjudication statistics: pending cases
  • U.S. Customs and Border Protection Nationwide Encounters, southwest land border
  • U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detention statistics: average daily population