President Donald Trump’s government announced on Monday (5) a new program to incentive for voluntary exit of illegal immigrants from the United States. The proposal provides for the payment of US $ 1,000 (about R $ 5,658) to irregular foreigners who choose to leave the country on their own, in addition to the cost of return and withdrawal tickets from the immigration agency’s detention list.
Named “”, the program was presented as a “safe and economic alternative” to compulsory deportation. According to the Secretary of Internal Security, Kristi Noem, the initiative represents an opportunity for immigrants to avoid arrest and regularize their situation away from US territory. Assistant secretary Tricia McLaughin reported that the first beneficiary was a Honduran citizen, already in the process of returning since Chicago.
The measure is also a form of economy for the government itself. Currently, the average cost of a deportation is around $ 17,121 per person (about $ 96.9 thousand), according to data from the Department of Internal Security (DHS). With the new program, a reduction of up to 70% at these costs is estimated.
The aid of US $ 1,000 will be paid individually – not by family – after confirming the arrival of the immigrant to the country of origin. The government has established a period of up to 21 days, from approval in the program, for the trip to be made.
Interested parties should apply for the CBP Home application, used by asylum and residence requests. Although young in the US, similar programs already exist in European countries, such as the United Kingdom, where illegal immigrants can receive up to 3,000 sterling pounds to return to their country, but are forbidden to return for at least five years.
The policy reinforces the migratory offensive of Trump management, which intensified the arrest of irregular immigrants since their return to office, resuming campaign promises focused on hardening the border policy.
