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How many illegal immigeants did Biden deport
Executive summary
Available reporting shows the Biden administration oversaw roughly 4.4–4.6 million “repatriations,” removals, expulsions and returns across its term (combining expulsions and other returns), and ICE reported 271,484 formal deportations/removals in FY 2024 alone (the highest single‑year total in recent data) [1] [2]. Different outlets and agencies count removals, expulsions under Title 42, returns at the border, and voluntary self‑deportations differently, so headline numbers can vary widely depending on methodology [1] [3].
1. What counts as a “deportation” — why the numbers differ
Journalists and government agencies use several overlapping categories: formal ICE removals (executed orders of removal), CBP or ICE expulsions and returns at the border (including Title 42 expulsions), and voluntary or “self‑deported” departures; some research groups combine these into a single “repatriation” figure, while others report only ICE removals, producing very different totals [3] [1]. Migration Policy Institute’s tally that combines removals, expulsions and other returns reaches about 4.4 million repatriations for the Biden era — a broader measure than ICE’s removal count [1]. ICE’s semi‑annual statistics show the granular, legally defined removals that many analysts use for apples‑to‑apples comparisons [3].
2. The headline figures you’ll see for Biden
Two commonly cited figures appear in coverage: a multi‑million “repatriation” total of about 4.4–4.6 million when expulsions and returns are included (Migration Policy Institute and press summaries) and ICE’s formal removals such as 271,484 deportations in FY 2024 — the latter is the single‑year deportation number often used for direct enforcement comparisons [1] [2]. Newsweek summarized government data saying about 4.6 million people were removed between January 2021 and November 2024, and cited 48,970 removals for November 2024 as the last monthly figure from Biden’s presidency [4].
3. How context and timing change interpretation
Experts and officials argue context matters: DHS officials contended Biden‑era numbers were “artificially high” because higher border encounters made removals and returns easier to carry out; others emphasize diplomatic and policy shifts (such as asylum restrictions) that changed flows and therefore removal totals [5] [1]. TRAC and other analysts note that measuring average daily removal rates and fiscal‑year apples‑to‑apples comparisons is necessary before claiming one administration deported more than another [2].
4. Competing narratives and political claims
Political actors have pushed differing narratives: some Republican claims portray Biden’s deportations as low or insignificant, while some pro‑enforcement Republican messaging later claimed very large removal numbers under their own administration for contrast [6]. Independent trackers such as TRAC and reporters at Reuters and KPBS stress that initial post‑inauguration numbers and administration press releases can be misleading without careful parsing of what’s counted and over what period [7] [5] [8].
5. Which sources are most reliable for a researcher?
For consistent time‑series analysis, ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) statistics and DHS releases provide primary data on formal removals and detention totals [3]. Migration Policy Institute and academic projects often aggregate expulsions, returns and removals to give a broader picture of people returned to other countries [1]. Independent data groups such as TRAC and media analyses (Reuters, Newsweek, KPBS) are helpful for context and validating claims, but they often draw on the same DHS/ICE datasets and differ mainly in methodology [2] [5] [4] [8].
6. What reporting does not answer (limitations)
Available sources do not provide a single universally agreed count labeled simply “illegal immigrants Biden deported” without qualification — figures depend on whether you include expulsions, returns, voluntary departures, Title 42 actions or only formal ICE removals (not found in current reporting). Also, sources warn that short‑term comparisons (first 14 or 100 days of an administration) can mislead unless adjusted for border encounter volumes and operational constraints [2] [7].
7. Bottom line for readers
If you mean formal ICE removals during Biden’s term, cite the ICE/DHS removal numbers (for example, about 271,484 removals in FY 2024 and aggregated counts across 2021–2024 summarized by analysts) [2] [4]. If you mean every type of return or expulsion at the border plus removals, migration analysts report totals in the 4.4–4.6 million range for the Biden era — a broader “repatriation” metric that mixes legal categories [1] [4]. Always ask which categories are being counted before accepting any single headline figure.