The Trump administration is offering a one-time stipend of $2,500 to unaccompanied migrant teenagers who choose to voluntarily leave the U.S. and return to their home countries, according to a letter sent to federal migrant shelters by the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of Refugee Resettlement.
This financial incentive is the latest effort by the administration to encourage voluntary deportations, following a previous offer of $1,000 for adult migrants to “self-deport.”
The letter, according to Reuters, indicates that unaccompanied teenagers aged 14 and older are eligible for the “one-time resettlement support stipend.”
However, an official from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) stated the offer would initially be made to 17-year-olds first. Minors from Mexico are not eligible for the program, but children who had already volunteered to depart as of the date of the letter are covered.
The payment is contingent on an immigration judge’s approval of the voluntary departure request and the child’s safe arrival in their country of origin, according to statements from both ICE and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Andrew Nixon, HHS communications director, defended the program, stating it “gives UACs [unaccompanied children] a choice and allows them to make an informed decision about their future.”
Immigration advocates have strongly condemned the stipend, calling it a “cruel tactic” that is coercive and undermines legal protections for vulnerable children. Wendy Young, president of Kids in Need of Defense, argued that the children are seeking safety and should not be pressured into returning to dangerous conditions.
Critics also express concern that the $2,500 sum could sway children—who may not be old enough to make complex legal decisions—to abandon their right to a fair hearing for potential asylum or other legal claims.
Under federal law, migrant children arriving at the U.S. border without a parent or legal guardian are classified as unaccompanied and placed in government-run shelters under the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement until they can be placed with a vetted sponsor.
As of last Thursday, more than 2,100 unaccompanied children were in HHS custody. The administration’s attempts to accelerate the deportation of migrant children have repeatedly faced legal challenges, including a recent case where a federal judge temporarily blocked the deportation of a group of Guatemalan children with active immigration cases. Since 2019, over 600,000 unaccompanied minors have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border.
