Lowest Level

Apprehensions of migrants illegally crossing the US-Mexico border dropped to their lowest annual level in more than half a century during fiscal year 2025.

Context

The US border patrol has tracked migration patterns along the southern border for decades, with apprehension numbers fluctuating based on economic conditions, security policies, and global migration trends. During the Biden Administration, the US experienced record-high levels of unauthorized crossings, with border patrol making 2.2M apprehensions in fiscal year 2022 alone. The surge created what officials described as an unprecedented humanitarian crisis at the border.

Sharp Decline

On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security and US Customs and Border Protection released data showing that border patrol agents intercepted approximately 238,000 migrants attempting to enter the country illegally along the southern border during fiscal year 2025 (October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2025) – the lowest total since 1970.