Keep Factually independent
Whether you agree or disagree with our analysis, these conversations matter for democracy. We don't take money from political groups - even a $5 donation helps us keep it that way.
How many people left the U.S. voluntarily each year between 2025 and 2025 according to DHS and ICE data?
Executive summary
Available reporting and agency releases in the provided sources do not give a single, consistent annual total of people who "left the U.S. voluntarily" for the year 2025; instead, ICE and DHS materials and contemporaneous news analyses report piecemeal figures and differing definitions (for example, “voluntary departures,” “voluntary returns,” and CBP-app-aided self‑deportations) making a single annual count unclear [1] [2]. Newsweek’s FOIA analysis through July 31, 2025 shows ICE-recorded departures including voluntary categories but calls the number of voluntary departures “relatively meager” and notes DHS/ICE have not published consistent removal data [2].
1. What the agencies count — multiple categories, not one single “voluntary” number
ICE’s public dashboard and ICE guidance treat removals as a group that can include voluntary returns of inadmissible noncitizens, formal voluntary departures, and CBP/Expedited Removal withdrawals — different administrative categories that are recorded separately in some datasets but aggregated in others, which complicates an annual “voluntary exit” total [1]. Newsweek’s FOIA review underscores this ambiguity by showing ICE records that separate deportation types and voluntary departures, without a single unambiguous nationwide annual tally published by DHS or ICE [2].
2. What independent reporting has been able to count so far
Newsweek obtained ICE records through a FOIA request covering departures through July 31, 2025 and reported aggregate ICE removals (145,419 since Jan. 20 in Newsweek’s dataset) with voluntary departure categories included in ICE’s breakdowns — but Newsweek explicitly said the number leaving voluntarily remained “relatively meager” and cautioned that DHS and ICE have not published consistent removals data, limiting definitive annual totals [2].
3. New policy pushes changed incentives but not transparent totals
In 2025 DHS launched a Voluntary Departure/CBP Home program offering paid travel and a $1,000 stipend to people who self‑deport and indicated participants who show intent to depart may be deprioritized for detention [3] [4]. Coverage of that policy notes projections and program details, but DHS releases and reporting cited here do not provide a clear annualized count of how many people used the CBP Home app or how many total voluntary departures occurred in full-year 2025 [3] [2].
4. Conflicting estimates and advocacy concerns
Some outlets and advocates report much different on‑the‑ground effects: Newsweek’s analysis contrasted ICE’s numbers with independent estimates and noted discrepancies [2]. Human Rights Watch and legal advocates say people in detention have been pressured into agreeing to voluntary departure and that coercion may skew counts and the meaning of “voluntary” in practice [5]. A court case and watchdog reporting also raise concerns that some people left the U.S. via voluntary departure to avoid detention — a dynamic that complicates interpreting official departure tallies [6] [5].
5. Recent numbers cited in reporting — fragmentary snapshots
Reporting referenced by the search results cites several specific data points (e.g., Newsweek’s FOIA-derived ICE totals through July 31, 2025 and DHS statements about program rollouts) but none of the provided items publishes a definitive annual total for voluntary departures spanning the calendar or fiscal year 2025; instead, they provide partial windows (through July 31) or aggregate removals that mix categories [2] [1] [3].
6. Why a single annual “voluntary leavers” figure is not present in these sources
The combined reasons in the sources are (a) ICE/DHS classify departures in multiple legal categories that are reported differently, (b) programmatic changes in 2025 (CBP Home stipend and travel assistance) introduced new pathways whose usage data was not yet separately published in the cited materials, and (c) independent reporting and advocacy groups flag potential coercion or legal pressure that can blur how “voluntary” is recorded — all of which prevent deriving a clean annual number from the documents provided [1] [3] [5] [2].
7. What follow‑up reporting or documents would settle this question
To produce a defensible annual count from DHS/ICE you would need a DHS/ICE breakdown showing: totals for (A) formal voluntary departures granted by immigration judges or DHS, (B) voluntary returns/inadmissible returns processed by CBP/ICE, and (C) CBP Home/Voluntary Departure Program participants for the full 2025 year — each with dates and whether departures were app‑facilitated. None of the supplied items includes that complete breakdown [1] [3] [2].
Limitations: These conclusions are based only on the documents and reporting provided above; available sources do not mention a single, definitive DHS‑ or ICE‑published annual total for people who left the U.S. “voluntarily” in 2025 [2] [1].