The Trump administration has engaged the United Nations migration team to help enact its self-deportation program for undocumented immigrants.
The UN agency for migration has championed migrant safety across the world, but is now being put at the epicenter of President Donald Trump’s attempt to restrict illegal migration.
Officials at the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a statement that the agency will work to ensure that the process remains safe and dignified, according to The Washington Post. It stressed that it would help with “assisted voluntary returns,” and not with deportations.
Trump has offered $1,000 to unauthorized immigrants who leave the U.S. of their own accord, and he has issued threats of fines and prison time to those who remain in the U.S.
Almost 1,000 immigrants have signed up for the first step of the process, which involves receiving information about the initiative.
Trump administration officials have claimed that the program allows immigrants to leave with compensation and the opportunity to possibly return legally; however, immigration attorneys have said that the administration is using violent and unusual enforcement strategies to push people to leave.
Over the last few decades, the IOM has aided more than 1.5 million people return to their home countries, such as Syria and Georgia. However, this is the first time the agency has enacted a program for people to leave the U.S voluntarily.
As of February, the U.S. was the largest donor to the IOM.
“In the United States, many migrants face a challenging reality — navigating complex systems with limited options and resources,” said the agency, according to The Post. “This initiative provides support to those who choose to return, helping them make a life-changing decision with care and clarity.”
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security told the paper that the IOM is an “implementing partner.”
In addition to the self-deportation program, the Trump administration has sent migrants to an El Salvadorian prison designated for terrorists, and it has considered deporting people to Ukraine as well as other hazardous nations. It has also threatened to place any immigrant in the U.S. illegally behind bars.
Advocates are concerned that some immigrants may leave the U.S. even if they have legal asylum applications or other benefits that could end in permanent residency or U.S. citizenship.
The IOM was established in 1951 to organize the resettlement of Europeans following the Second World War and is now the top intergovernmental organization handling migration issues in the UN system.
The IOM operated “safe mobility” offices during former President Joe Biden’s time in office, the Migration Policy Institute think tank noted to The Post. They were regional processing centers that helped people find opportunities to migrate lawfully.
The organization slammed the “Remain in Mexico” policy in 2021, arguing that it was “inhumane.” Trump enacted that policy during his first stint in the White House to force asylum seekers to wait outside the U.S. during the processing of their claims. He ordered the government to restart the policy in January.
“Our role is to ensure that those who lack the means to return on their own can do so in a safe, dignified, and informed way,” the IOM told The Post. “IOM does not facilitate or implement deportations.”
The organization’s “assisted voluntary return” system in Latin America includes orientation for immigrants, followed by an interview with a case worker to make sure that people are aware of their options. Staff may also help immigrants plan travel and find places to stay, food, and other kinds of support. It remains unclear if the organization is set to offer those same services to immigrants in the U.S.
The DHS website states that immigrants without funds to pay for a ticket to get home can request funding and help with booking their travel and getting passports.
However, immigration attorneys in the U.S. note that while officials are telling migrants they may be able to return legally, according to federal law, a person who has been in the U.S. unlawfully for over a year is barred from entering the U.S. for a decade.
If someone leaves during the processing of their immigration court case, a removal order may be issued for them that would also stop them from returning for years. Immigration and Customs Enforcement states on its site that it “may agree” to dismiss a case if an immigrant can prove that they voluntarily left the U.S.
