Preliminary figures from U.S. Customs and Border Protection are signaling a continued decrease of unlawful border crossings during September, reaching the lowest monthly figure of President Joe Biden's administration.
Since the implementation of the executive order making it more difficult for migrants to seek asylum and remain in the country in June, encounters along the U.S. southern border have dropped drastically. The figure has dropped by more than 70% compared to the 249,741 encounters in December 2023.
According to preliminary data reported by CBS News and ABC News, Border Patrol conducted under 54,000 apprehensions in September, marking the lowest figure since August 2020 during the final months of Donald Trump's presidency.
Eager to continue down that path, the Biden administration last month increased the requisites needed to lift the restrictions.
Earlier in October, Troy Miller, action CBP commissioner, announced that migrant arrests had dropped by 55% since June.
While visiting Nogales, Arizona, Miller said that more people have been removed from the U.S. this year than in any year since 2010, with 85% of those crossing the U.S.-Mexico border facing expedited removal.
The CBP commissioner also revealed that migrant releases pending court proceedings have decreased by 80%, allowing for agencies to count with more agents stationed along the border.
But Biden's asylum restrictions have not only stopped migrants from trying to cross the border, they have also increased deportation numbers. Luis Miranda, a DHS spokesman, told Border Report that since June, the deportation of migrants from the U.S. has tripled.
"We've been able to triple the percentage of people who are going through expedited processing each month," said Miranda. "We have sent back migrants to 180 countries using repatriation flights as far away as Africa, Europe and Asia."
According to data from Mexico's Secretary of the Interior, 136,439 Mexican nationals were deported between January and August of this year, including 19,433 minors.
Miranda added that since May 2022, 740,000 people have been returned to their home countries.
The figures don't mean migrants have stopped attempting to reach the border altogether. In fact, there are new migrant caravans making their way to the country at the moment. According to activists, migrants traveling in these caravans have stopped waiting for online appointments through the CBP One app and they continue to grow worried that asylum requests will become harder in case former President Donald Trump wins another term.
The first caravan group that left Chiapas on Oct. 5 was seen near Mexico City, while other groups were moving through the state of Oaxaca. Some reports stated that Mexican authorities detained 118 caravan members and sent them back to Chiapas.
