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US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem explained the new feature on the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Home app, which now allows undocumented immigrants to voluntarily leave the country. The tool is part of the Trump administration’s broader immigration enforcement strategy.
"The CBP Home app gives aliens the option to leave now and self-deport, so they may still have the opportunity to return legally in the future and live the American dream," Noem wrote on Truth Social on Monday. She warned those who do not comply: "If they don’t, we will find them, we will deport them, and they will never return."
How the app works
According to Noem, hundreds have already used the app to leave the country voluntarily. She said individuals with final removal orders could face fines of up to $700 per day if they remain in the US.
The app’s self-deportation feature provides an alternative to formal deportation, which can have long-term legal consequences for re-entry. Those who use it avoid the formal removal process, which can involve detention and a lengthy appeal system.
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Rajani Srinivasan, an Indian student, was one of the first to access the self-deportation option. Her visa was revoked after being accused of “advocating for violence and terrorism.”
Srinivasan, who had been pursuing a doctorate in urban planning at Columbia University, left the US after Homeland Security cited her involvement in activities supporting Hamas.
Trump administration’s ‘Stay Out and Leave Now’ campaign
The app’s feature is part of a $200 million “Stay Out and Leave Now” campaign, which urges undocumented immigrants to leave voluntarily. Noem appeared in an advertisement for the campaign, saying: “President Trump has a clear message: if you are here illegally, we will find you and deport you. You will never return. But if you leave now, you may have an opportunity to return and enjoy our freedom and live the American dream.”
She said illegal border crossings had dropped by 95% under the current administration, with daily encounters at historic lows. Since January, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested more than 32,000 individuals.
Why introduce the feature?
The Trump administration has been using military planes and chartered flights to deport undocumented individuals, including three flights to India in the past seven weeks. The app offers an alternative that reduces the need for ICE enforcement and detention, which can be costly for US taxpayers.
A statement from the Department of Homeland Security said the app “saves US taxpayer dollars and valuable CBP and ICE resources to focus on dangerous criminal aliens.”
