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Have removals of suspected unauthorized immigrants from SSA records increased or decreased compared with 2024?
Executive summary
Available reporting shows an increase in enforcement actions and policy changes in 2025 that aim to identify and remove unauthorized immigrants, but published counts and direct comparisons of “removals from SSA records” versus 2024 are not consistently reported in the materials provided. MigrationPolicy and TRAC describe stepped-up enforcement, expanded data access and claims about removals, while the White House asserts removals from Social Security that the SSA itself does not corroborate in its public statement [1] [2] [3] [4].
1. What people mean by “removals from SSA records” — ambiguous terminology matters
“Removals from SSA records” can mean at least three different things: (a) people physically deported from the country (ICE/DHS removals), (b) administrative revocations of immigration-related work authorizations or parole that would invalidate Social Security-related benefits or SSNs, and (c) agency actions to deactivate or flag Social Security Numbers in SSA systems. The search results discuss deportations and revocations of parole/work permits (for example, revocations for parolees from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela), and separately show the White House fact sheet claiming removal of “illegal aliens” from Social Security — but the SSA press statement notes it does not confirm a specific number that the White House cited [5] [3] [4].
2. Government and watchdogs report increased enforcement activity in 2025
Independent observers and DHS records indicate the current administration pushed aggressive enforcement in 2025, including lifting limits on agency database access and prioritizing interior and expedited removals. Migration Policy reports the administration “has lifted historical prohibitions” on accessing SSA and other federal databases to locate unauthorized immigrants and says the administration’s actions have reshaped enforcement in its first 100 days [1]. TRAC’s analysis disputes some public claims of huge removal totals but documents intensified arrest and removal activity compared with earlier baselines [2].
3. Conflicting claims about counts and rate comparisons
The White House fact sheet asserts that the Administration is “removing” illegal aliens from the Social Security system and cites large numbers, including more than 2 million SSNs assigned in FY2024 under the prior administration, and implies removals since taking office [3]. TRAC’s reporting directly challenges headline claims of record removals, saying a public press release overstated removals and that TRAC’s own numbers show a lower tally (roughly 72,000 versus an asserted 135,000 in one example) and that the average daily removal rate under the reported new administration was roughly comparable or slightly lower than the Biden average in the comparable period [2]. The SSA’s own blog post says it did not confirm or deny a specific White House figure [4]. That creates a factual dispute in the public record [2] [3] [4].
4. Data sources that would answer the question exist — but were not supplied here
Definitive comparison of removals “from SSA records” in 2025 versus 2024 would require checking: (a) DHS/OHSS removals and returns monthly tables (the operational system of record), (b) ICE ERO removals dashboards, and (c) any SSA administrative actions regarding SSNs or benefit eligibility. The OHSS monthly tables and ICE ERO statistics are explicitly maintained for removals and returns and could be used for a year‑over‑year comparison, but the search results include only pointers to those datasets rather than a single tally in this collection [6] [7].
5. What the available sources do and do not say about trends
Available sources say enforcement activity and policy changes increased in 2025 and that parole/work-authorization revocations affected hundreds of thousands of parolees (e.g., >500,000 parolees had protections and work permits invalidated in 2025), which would reduce lawful status and could lead to SSA record actions; Pew and others indicate the unauthorized population may have begun declining in 2025 partly due to increased removals [5] [8]. However, the sources do not supply a clear, single statistic that directly answers whether SSA-record removals increased or decreased compared to 2024; TRAC explicitly refutes some headline claims of outsized removal totals and the SSA says it did not confirm a specific White House figure [2] [4] [5].
6. Bottom line and what to check next
Bottom line: reporting and policy documents show an enforcement ramp-up in 2025 that likely produced more revocations of parole/work authorization and greater interior enforcement efforts, but the specific claim that removals “from SSA records” increased or decreased relative to 2024 is unresolved in the materials provided — TRAC disputes some administration tallies and SSA did not confirm the White House number [2] [4] [5]. To settle the question, consult the DHS OHSS monthly tables and ICE ERO removals dashboards for calendar/fiscal‑year totals and request any SSA administrative statistics on SSN deactivations or removals referenced in the White House paper [6] [7] [3].