Illegal immigration plummets in Trump’s first month

Illegal immigration has plummeted following the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States, statistics show.

The number of encounters between border crossers and law enforcement officials during the last 11 days of January, which correlated with President Trump’s first 11 days in office this year, dropped 85% compared to the last 11 days of January 2024, according to a statement from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Meanwhile, the number of “inadmissible aliens encountered by CBP’s Office of Field Operations at ports of entry along the southwest border dropped 93% in the 11 days after Jan. 20 compared with the 11 days prior.” Trump took office on Jan. 20. 

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Monthly border crossings reached the lowest point in three years in January 2025, according to data from CBP, which shows that 61,465 encounters occured between illegal immigrants seeking entry into the country and immigration law enforcement officials took place last month.

This constitutes a significant drop from the 96,035 encounters recorded in December 2024, the last full month of the Biden administration.

Throughout the past three years, monthly encounters between illegal immigrants and immigration law enforcement consistently remained above 100,000. In December 2023, they reached a record high of 301,981. Only in the last two full months of the Biden administration, when it was known that Trump would be taking office the following year, did the border crossings drop below 100,000. 

“The men and women of U.S. Customs and Border Protection are aggressively implementing the President’s Executive Orders to secure our borders. These actions have already resulted in dramatic improvements in border security,” CBP Acting Commissioner Pete Flores said in a statement.

“The reduction in illegal aliens attempting to make entry into the U.S., compounded by a significant increase in repatriations, means that more officers and agents are now able to conduct the enforcement duties that make our border more secure and our country safer.”

While the Trump administration is touting the decline in border crossings as evidence of the success of its immigration policy and rhetoric, some efforts to crack down on illegal immigration faced pushback from the judicial branch and some religious groups.

A Monday decision from Judge Theodore Chuang of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland prevents the Trump administration from conducting immigration law enforcement at several Quaker churches, a Baptist church and a Sikh temple. 

Plaintiffs in the case are the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, the New England Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, the Baltimore Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, Inc., the Adelphi Friends Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, the Richmond Friends Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, the New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, Inc., the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and the Sikh Temple Sacramento. 

The decision from Chuang, appointed to the bench by former President Barack Obama, prevents the Trump administration from enforcing or applying the memorandums titled “Enforcement Actions in or Near Protected Areas” and “Common Sense Enforcement Actions in or Near Protected Areas” against churches operated by the plaintiff organizations. 

The first memorandum, issued by the Department of Homeland Security on the first day of the Trump administration, rescinded a policy limiting the ability of immigration law enforcement officials to deport illegal immigrants in or near “sensitive” areas such as churches or schools. A DHS spokesperson cited the policy change as necessary to ensure that “Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest.”

The second memorandum, issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Jan. 31, authorizes the agency’s Assistant Field Office Directors and Assistant Special Agents in Charge to make “case-by-case determinations regarding whether, where, and when to conduct an immigration enforcement action in or near a protected area.” 

While the ICE officials may “provide authorization for such actions either verbally or in writing,” they “must consult with local Office of the Principal Legal Advisor leadership for guidance on constitutional considerations” if they seek to authorize “immigration enforcement action at a site where a public demonstration is underway.”

Chuang’s ruling only applies to the plaintiff organizations, meaning that the Trump administration can continue to carry out immigration enforcement operations at places of worship not covered by the order. While congressional Democrats have introduced legislation designed to prevent immigration enforcement within 1,000 feet of churches or schools except in extraordinary circumstances, the measure is not expected to pass in the Republican-controlled U.S. Congress.