Number of deaths due to illegal migration
Executive summary
Global and U.S.-specific counts show thousands of deaths tied to irregular migration each year, but the exact number depends on definitions and reporting criteria; the International Organization for Migration’s Missing Migrants Project recorded at least 8,938 deaths worldwide on migration routes in 2024, while U.S. agency and media reporting documented dozens of deaths in U.S. custody and hundreds along U.S. borders with substantial undercounts acknowledged [1] [2] [3] [4]. Analysts and agencies warn these figures are minimum estimates because many deaths go unrecorded and different agencies apply different inclusion rules, which fuels competing narratives and policy arguments [5] [6] [3].
1. Global tally: the IOM’s grim baseline
The most consistent public baseline comes from IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, which reported that at least 8,938 people died on migration routes worldwide in 2024, making it the deadliest year on record in their database and continuing a five‑year upward trend; IOM and its Missing Migrants Project explicitly call their numbers minimum estimates because many fatalities go unrecorded and locations are often approximate [1] [5] [4].
2. U.S. picture: custody deaths and border fatalities are counted differently
In the United States, counting is fragmented: ICE reported dozens of deaths in its custody—32 deaths in 2025, a two‑decade high matching 2004, and several additional deaths were reported in early 2026—with Reuters and The Guardian documenting the agency’s spike in fatalities as detention populations rose [2] [7] [8]. Separately, U.S. Customs and Border Protection publishes border rescue and mortality data limited to incidents in which its personnel were directly involved, while other organizations (local medical examiners, NGOs like Humane Borders) compile supplementary counts—an arrangement that produces multiple overlapping but nonidentical tallies [3] [6].
3. Why these numbers diverge: definitions, jurisdiction and undercounts
Differences in who counts a death and which deaths qualify explain wide variation: CBP’s MMP criteria include only cases where Border Patrol was involved or discovery occurred in designated target zones, ICE records focus on in‑custody deaths, and IOM aggregates reports from governments, media and local sources but treats figures as minimums; migration scholars and data projects all caution that official tallies understate true mortality because many bodies are never found or identified and cross‑border jurisdictions complicate reporting [3] [6] [5] [4].
4. Political context and competing agendas shaping the data story
Reporting and policy debates amplify different figures to support contrasting agendas: enforcement advocates highlight detention and enforcement‑related deaths to argue for tougher controls and accountability, while humanitarian groups emphasize IOM’s global totals and undercount caveats to press for legal routes and rescue capacity; analysts such as Brookings and the Congressional Budget Office note that population estimates and removal figures may fold in deaths, voluntary departures, and removals differently, which can be used to justify policy choices around migration and enforcement [9] [10] [1].
5. What can be said with confidence — and what cannot
It is certain that thousands die annually on migration routes worldwide (IOM: ≥8,938 in 2024) and that dozens have died in U.S. immigration custody recently (ICE: 32 in 2025; additional deaths reported in early 2026), and it is equally certain that official tallies are minimums that miss many cases [1] [2] [7] [5] [4]. What cannot be precisely stated from available reporting is a single definitive “number of deaths due to illegal migration” that captures every jurisdictional gap, unidentified remains, or unreported disappearance; the data infrastructure and differing mandates of CBP, ICE, IOM and local authorities prevent a single authoritative total [3] [6] [5].