- Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin estimates deportation costs $18,225 per person during a television interview.
- The administration targets 1,000 removals daily while promoting self-deportation as a cheaper alternative for migrants.
- USCIS has implemented new asylum filing fees as part of a broader effort to make legal immigration self-funded.
(UNITED STATES) — Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said on April 16, 2026 that the Trump administration wants legal immigration while pursuing removals of people in the country illegally, and he put the average deportation cost at $18,225 per person.
Mullin made the remarks in a television interview, less than a month after he was sworn in on March 24, 2026. He tied the administration’s message on enforcement to a narrower claim about who should remain eligible to come to the United States.
“So, we want immigration; we want legal immigration. We are a nation of immigrants. We want legal immigration—people that want to make the country stronger.”
Pressed on what he described as the administration’s target, Mullin said: “That’s right. the agenda is to deport only illegal immigrants, both within the country and those who attempt to enter from other countries.”
His appearance came after President Trump elevated him to lead the department following the firing of former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in March 2026. Mullin has since said he wants to bring stability to the department while keeping up aggressive enforcement.
| India | China | ROW | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EB-1 | Apr 01, 2023 | Apr 01, 2023 | Current |
| EB-2 | Jul 15, 2014 | Sep 01, 2021 | Current |
| EB-3 | Nov 15, 2013 | Jun 15, 2021 | Jun 01, 2024 |
| F-1 | Sep 01, 2017 ▲123d | Sep 01, 2017 ▲123d | Sep 01, 2017 ▲123d |
| F-2A | Aug 01, 2024 ▲182d | Aug 01, 2024 ▲182d | Aug 01, 2024 ▲182d |
The administration has set a goal of deporting 1,000 illegal immigrants daily. At that pace, removals would reach roughly 1.4 million by January 20, 2029, the end of Trump’s term.
Mullin’s $18,225 figure put a fresh dollar amount on the government’s effort to carry out those removals. The administration attributes the higher cost of enforced deportation to legal requirements, attorney costs for asylum claims and transportation logistics.
Officials have paired that figure with a cheaper alternative. DHS puts the average cost of self-deportation at about $5,100 per individual.
That comparison sits at the center of Project Homecoming, an initiative created by [Presidential Proclamation 10935](https://www.whitehouse.gov). Under the program, DHS offers people who agree to leave a $2,600 exit bonus, a complimentary one-way flight to their home country and forgiveness of civil fines for failure to depart.
The department directs participants to use the [CBP Home app](https://www.uscis.gov) tied to the Project Homecoming system. DHS says roughly 2.2 million people have self-deported since January 2025, while internal documents reviewed by media put the number who specifically used the app at about 72,000 as of March 2026.
Those figures show a gap between the administration’s broader self-departure count and the narrower tally tied directly to the app. DHS has continued to promote voluntary departure as a less expensive option than arrest, detention and formal removal.
Mullin has also urged Congress to settle funding disputes affecting the department during stepped-up enforcement operations. He has said DHS personnel, including workers in the Coast Guard and TSA, should continue to be paid as the administration presses ahead with its immigration agenda.
The message on legal immigration arrives as the government raises the price of using parts of that system. In April 2026, USCIS imposed a filing fee for Form I-589, the Application for Asylum, marking the first such fee in modern U.S. history.
USCIS says the change forms part of a wider effort to make the legal immigration system pay for itself through applicant fees rather than taxpayer funding. The agency’s [2026 fee schedule update](https://www.uscis.gov/forms/filing-fees) also raised other filing costs, with some increases topping 100% as officials cited inflation and operating expenses.
That shift leaves legal applicants facing higher costs at the same time the administration says it supports lawful entry. Asylum seekers, in particular, now confront an immediate new payment to file for protection.
People in the country without legal status face a harder choice. The government is offering a cash incentive and airfare to leave through Project Homecoming, while warning that enforced deportation carries a permanent bar on re-entering the United States.
Mullin’s comments placed that split in plain view: praise for immigrants who come legally, and a pledge to remove those who do not. The cost figures added another dimension, framing deportation not only as an enforcement campaign but also as a budget question for taxpayers and for Congress, which must keep funding the agency carrying it out.
DHS announced Mullin’s confirmation in a [news release dated March 24, 2026](https://www.dhs.gov). USCIS has posted separate notices on [Project Homecoming](https://www.uscis.gov) and the fee changes that took effect in April 2026, giving official form to a policy mix that raises the cost of legal filings while advertising voluntary departure as the cheaper route out.
