Since President Donald Trump's return to office in January 2025, US border encounters have significantly decreased, with Mexican nationals constituting the largest group of detentions.
Border Encounters Decline
- From January 2025 to February 2026, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recorded 452,865 encounters at US borders.
- This represents a sharp decline from the nearly 3 million encounters in the comparable 14-month period under President Biden.
- Of the total, 44% occurred on the southern border (US-Mexico), and 15% on the northern border (US-Canada).
- The Trump administration attributes the drop to policies such as mass deportations, blocking illegal immigration, and suspending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans.
- CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott announced that for ten consecutive months, no migrants have been released into the US interior.
Top Nationalities Detained
Based on CBP statistics, the top nationalities from January 2025 to February 2026 are:
- Mexican: 140,115
- Canadian: 36,791
- Indian: 29,926
- Chinese: 29,232
- Filipino: 28,774
- Guatemalan: 22,024
- Venezuelan: 16,818
- Honduran: 16,325
- Colombian: 9,305
- Cuban: 8,251 Latin American and Caribbean countries feature prominently, with Mexico leading by a wide margin.
Comparison with Biden Era
In the last 14 months of Biden's term (November 2024 to December 2025), CBP recorded 2,984,314 encounters, nearly seven times more than under Trump. The decline in border crossings began early in Trump's second term and has continued consistently.
Impact on Venezuelan Migrants
Under Biden, Venezuelans benefited from TPS, refugee status, and work permits. Trump's administration has suspended TPS for Venezuelans, eliminated refugee status, and detains migrants irrespective of work authorization. Consequently, Venezuelan encounters dropped from 319,740 under Biden to 16,818 under Trump, a reduction of approximately 20 times. This policy shift has deterred many Venezuelans from attempting to reach US borders.