WASHINGTON: The Trump administration said on Monday it will pay for the travel and give $1,000 to undocumented migrants who "self-deport" back to their home country.
"If you are here illegally, self-deportation is the best, safest and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest," Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) "is now offering illegal aliens financial travel assistance and a stipend to return to their home country through the CBP Home App," Noem said in a statement.
DHS said the stipend of $1,000 will be paid after a person's return to their home country has been confirmed through the app.
"Self-deportation is a dignified way to leave the US and will allow illegal aliens to avoid being encountered by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)," the department said in the statement.
DHS said that even with the payment of travel assistance and the stipend "it is projected that the use of CBP Home will decrease the costs of a deportation by around 70%."
It said that the average cost currently to arrest, detain, and remove an undocumented migrant is $17,121.
DHS said an undocumented migrant from Honduras had already taken advantage of the program to return home.
US President Donald Trump pledged during his White House campaign to deport millions of undocumented migrants.
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