Washington: The number of migrants apprehended while illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in March reached an all-time low, according to preliminary data released by the U.S. government on Tuesday.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported that approximately 7,180 migrants were arrested at the border in March, marking the lowest monthly total ever recorded. This figure represents a significant decline from the average of 155,000 monthly arrests over the past four years, the agency stated.
Final statistics for March are expected to be released in the coming days, CBP added.
“Border Patrol agents are empowered like never before to shut down unlawful entry and protect American lives,” Acting CBP Commissioner Pete Flores said in an official statement.
President Donald Trump, who returned to the White House on January 20, has implemented a series of measures aimed at curbing illegal border crossings. The Republican president has argued that a stricter crackdown was necessary following what he described as record-high migration levels under his Democratic predecessor, former President Joe Biden.
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Trump’s administration has deployed additional military troops to the border and imposed a comprehensive asylum ban as part of its enforcement strategy. Some of these actions built upon policies that were already in progress toward the end of Biden’s tenure, such as a similar asylum ban and increased cooperation with Mexican authorities. The combination of these measures appears to have contributed to the sharp decline in border crossings.
CBP’s enforcement data, which dates back to 2000, indicates that the previous lowest monthly total was recorded in February 2024, with 8,347 arrests. Prior to that, the record low was in April 2017, during the early months of Trump’s first term, when Border Patrol arrested 11,127 migrants.
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Historically, border arrests have fluctuated under different administrations. While the number of apprehensions also dropped at the beginning of Trump’s first term—a phenomenon some analysts dubbed “the Trump effect”—arrests later rebounded in subsequent months and years.
Migrant arrests are commonly used as an indicator of illegal crossings, though experts note that some migrants may evade detection entirely.
