Trump administration unveils new "self-deportation" app to address illegal immigration

In a new push to reinforce its hard-line stance on illegal immigration, the Trump administration launched a mobile app on Monday designed to facilitate the voluntary departure of immigrants currently residing in the U.S. without legal status (via Reuters).

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection's CBP Home app offers a unique opportunity for individuals to signal their intent to leave the country on their own terms, potentially avoiding detention or arrest.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem explained that the app aims to give undocumented immigrants a chance to self-deport and possibly return to the United States legally in the future.

This initiative marks the latest move in the administration's ongoing efforts to aggressively tackle illegal immigration, which includes upcoming regulations requiring immigrants without legal status to register with the federal government under threat of fines or imprisonment.

The introduction of this app signals the end of the Biden-era CBP One app, which allowed migrants to schedule appointments to request entry at legal border crossings—a program Republicans criticised as an encouragement for mass migration.