E-Paper
77% fall in Indian illegal immigration to US in first 9 months of Trump admin
The number of Indian illegal migrants arriving in the US rose sharply during the Biden administration. In FY 2023, the number of encounters between border forces and Indian migrants peaked at nearly 97,000
Washington Indian illegal immigration to the United States has plunged sharply by 77% in the first 9 months of the Trump administration, according to data released by the US Customs and Border Protection agency reviewed by HT. Between January to September 2024, US border agencies reported 66,524 border encounters with illegal Indian migrations. However, that number fell to just 15,551 encounters during the same time period this year.
Migration experts told HT that the Trump administration’s refusal to grant asylum to illegal migrants has deterred tens of thousands from making the expensive and hazardous journey from India to America. The Trump administration’s high-profile immigration crackdowns and well-publicised deportations of illegal migrants have also sent a message. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has placed significant diplomatic pressure on Canada, Mexico and a number of Central American countries to restrict illegal migrants from reaching the United States.
“The Trump administration’s refusal to grant asylum to migrants at the border and other enforcement policies have impacted every nationality, but also Indians in particular. Being a group from outside the Western hemisphere means it is hard to reach the northern or southern US border. So any immigration restrictions would hit Indians the most,” said Gill Guerra, immigration policy analyst at the Niskanen Centre.
The number of Indian illegal migrants arriving in the United States rose sharply during the Biden administration. In FY 2023, the number of encounters between border forces and Indian migrants peaked at nearly 97,000. According to the Pew Research Institute, around 725,000 Indians were residing illegally in the US. Guerra adds that much of the illegal migration in recent years were driven by individuals from Punjab and Haryana, who arrived in the US claiming asylum citing political and religious discrimination in India. However, Guerra adds that much of the motivation for this migration is driven by economic needs and the desire for a better life in America.
“A lot of what people were seeing in India who were potentially trying to immigrate were lots of videos of people crossing through South America having an adventure, then arriving in America, being allowed to work, and then driving through the US, and kind of having a life that was not only very interesting, but also a life that allowed them to have an income. But one of the things that the Trump administration did was to really show that if you come illegally, not only will you lose a lot of money, because you’ll be sent back, but also how you will be sent back will not be pleasant,” said Guerra.
Illegal migrants from India attempted to cross into the United States either from the northern border with Canada or the southern border with Mexico. In several cases, migrants paid thousands of dollars to reach the US border by travelling through a number of South American countries in sometimes hazardous terrain.
Muzaffar Chishti at the Migration Policy Institute adds that the reduction in illegal migration numbers began under the Biden administration, which introduced some restrictions in granting asylum to migrants. These restrictions were expanded to an almost total ban of asylum grants under Trump.
“The migrants who come here are very smart people. If they hear that their chances of coming into America are close to zero, they will stop coming. That’s what is behind the reduction in numbers,” said Chishti.
Meanwhile, Guerra expects that the illegal migration numbers from India will stay low for the remainder of the Trump administration.
“I would be shocked if illegal immigration numbers from India went up significantly. I don’t really see any scenario in which those migration levels will increase,” says Guerra, who adds that the Indian government is also keen to cooperate with the Trump administration on reducing illegal migration.
