What are the top 5 countries for US deportations in 2025?

1. Mexico still tops the list — by a wide margin

ICE and multiple reporting outlets show Mexico as the largest single country of citizenship for arrests, removals and removal orders in 2025; Newsweek’s mid‑2025 arrest map put Mexico far ahead with 11,586 arrests in its sample and trackers of ICE removals likewise report Mexico leading removal counts ^{[3] [4]}. DHS/OHSS administrative tables are the official place to verify precise counts by fiscal period ^[2].

2. Central American countries consistently appear in the next slots

Reporting and independent compilations repeatedly list Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador among the highest nationalities affected by interior enforcement and removals in 2025 — for example, Newsweek’s arrests breakdown placed Guatemala and Honduras behind Mexico while other trackers show El Salvador and Nicaragua also prominent ^{[3] [6]}. Which of those three occupies #2–#5 shifts by dataset and month, so short‑term snapshots can differ ^{[2] [3]}.

3. Two common ways sources compile “top 5” yield different answers

Authoritative DHS/OHSS tables and ICE ERO “Removals” lists count formal removals by citizenship; other media pieces use arrest counts, detention rosters or court removal orders — each produces a different ranking. The OHSS Persist dataset is DHS’s statistical system of record and is updated monthly; ICE publishes biweekly detention statistics, which some outlets have used to build alternative lists ^{[2] [1] [7]}.

4. Third‑country removals and new partnerships complicate nationality totals

In 2025 the administration used agreements and third‑country flights that sometimes routed people to countries other than their nationality, and news organizations have documented removals to nations such as Panama, South Sudan and El Salvador via special arrangements. That practice can inflate counts of certain destinations while obscuring nationality‑by‑removal statistics, so a “top 5 destination” list isn’t identical to “top 5 nationalities deported” ^{[6] [8]}.

5. DHS headline numbers vs. independent scrutiny — a major caveat

DHS and the administration released headline tallies (e.g., statements about 500,000+ deportations or “2 million removed or self‑deported”) that reporters and analysts have questioned; NPR and other outlets show evidence those claims are not fully documented in released datasets and may mix removals, returns and voluntary departures in nonstandard ways ^{[9] [10] [5]}. Use OHSS/ICE removal tables for consistent “removals” counts rather than administration press releases alone ^{[2] [1]}.

6. Where to get a defensible, current “top 5” for 2025

For a verifiable ranking, use: ^[11] ICE ERO Removals: FY2025 table and ^[12] DHS OHSS “Removals and Returns by Citizenship” monthly tables. Those datasets list removals by country of citizenship and are updated regularly; secondary news lists (The Guardian, Newsweek, The Global Statistics) can help interpret trends but sometimes mix arrest, detention and removal measures ^{[1] [2] [7] [3]}.

7. Bottom line and recommended framing for reporting or policy use

If you need a quick public answer, most credible reporting and government tables put Mexico first, with Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua (or sometimes Colombia/other South American countries depending on period and dataset) rounding out the top ranks — but always cite the exact ICE/OHSS table and month you used because rankings change over time and because DHS headline claims have been challenged ^{[3] [4] [5] [2]}.

Limitations: available sources do not provide a single, unambiguous “top 5 countries for US deportations in 2025” without specifying which ICE/DHS table and date-range is used; DHS press releases and advocacy/think‑tank summaries sometimes use different definitions (removals vs. returns vs. voluntary departures), and independent reporting has flagged inconsistencies ^{[2] [5] [7]}.