❓WHAT HAPPENED: Unlawful crossings at the southern border have dropped to their lowest level since 1970, according to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: U.S. Border Patrol, President Donald J. Trump, DHS, and Latin American governments, including Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, and Guatemala.
📍WHEN & WHERE: Fiscal year 2025, covering the U.S.-Mexico southern border and transit routes through Central and South America.
💬KEY QUOTE: “President Trump has overwhelmingly delivered on his promise to secure our Southern Border. As a result, Americans are safer—unvetted criminal illegal aliens and dangerous drugs are no longer pouring over our border unchecked.” – Abigail Jackson, White House spokeswoman
🎯IMPACT: The Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies have drastically reduced illegal border crossings.
Illegal crossings at the U.S.–Mexico border have fallen to their lowest level in over 50 years, according to newly released internal data from the Department of Homeland Security. U.S. Border Patrol recorded approximately 238,000 apprehensions in fiscal year 2025, a dramatic decline from the 2.2 million reported in fiscal year 2022 during the Biden-Harris regime.
The sharp drop has been widely attributed to the return of aggressive enforcement policies under President Donald J. Trump since he resumed office in January 2025. These measures include expanded military deployments along the border, restricted access to asylum, and accelerated deportation procedures.
“President Trump has overwhelmingly delivered on his promise to secure our Southern Border,” said White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson. “As a result, Americans are safer—unvetted criminal illegal aliens and dangerous drugs are no longer pouring over our border unchecked.”
Notably, more than 60 percent of the fiscal year’s apprehensions occurred in the final months of Joe Biden’s term. By September 2025, the number of monthly apprehensions had dropped to a record low of 8,400. Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, senior policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, noted that “strict restrictions to access asylum at the border, coupled with new detention policies, are the two most important factors that have led to the recent decline in irregular [sic] migrant arrivals.”
The Trump administration has also expanded cooperation with regional governments, including Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, and Guatemala, to stem migration flows. Mexico has deployed troops to its southern and northern borders, while other countries in Central America have increased their own border enforcement efforts.
The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown extends beyond the southern border. Illegal crossings at the U.S.–Canada border have also plunged. In the Swanton Sector, which includes parts of New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire, arrests dropped by 95 percent from March 2024 to March 2025. Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said, “There is now a clear message: You cannot come into the U.S. without consequence.”
Notably, Trump’s deportation strategy has driven a growing number of migrants to seek entry into Canada instead, with over 5,500 asylum claims filed at a single Quebec border crossing since July.
Domestically, the Trump administration has also increased prosecutions of illegal entrants. In June 2025 alone, over 3,000 migrants were charged with criminal reentry, a record high. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has also ramped up deportations.
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