U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently released a report detailing a significant decrease in migrant apprehensions at border ports in 2024 compared to the previous year. According to the report, the number of migrant apprehensions between ports of entry in August 2024 was 68% lower than in August 2023. This drop in apprehensions can be attributed to the Biden administration’s new limits on asylum introduced in June, as well as a coordinated crackdown with Mexico.
Adam Isacson, the director for defense oversight at the Washington Office on Latin America, described the situation as “two crackdowns layered on top of each other.” He explained that each of the crackdowns in Mexico and the U.S. reduced migration at the border by about half in the short term. This joint effort between the two countries led to a significant reduction in the number of migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border.
In December 2023, President Joe Biden and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced “additional enforcement actions” to address irregular migration after a phone call between the two leaders. More than 30,000 soldiers from the Mexican armed forces were deployed to Mexico’s borders to begin moving migrants into the interior of the country or repatriating them to their countries of origin.
President Biden highlighted the collaboration with Mexico in reducing irregular immigration, emphasizing that the number of migrants coming to the shared border unlawfully had dropped dramatically due to the arrangements made with President Obrador. Isacson noted that the partnership with Mexico led to the first significant reduction of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border in 2024.
However, there have been reports of human rights violations experienced by migrants in Mexico since January. An investigation by the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies revealed that some migrants were stranded in what were effectively open-air prisons, where they faced physical violence and restrictions on travel and work.
In June, the Biden administration issued an executive order imposing new limits on asylum, which immigrant rights organizations criticized as a ban. Since the implementation of these limits, CBP reported an additional 50% reduction in migrant encounters between ports of entry. Isacson explained that the Biden administration added a second crackdown in early June, stating that anyone who comes between ports of entry has very little chance of accessing the U.S. asylum system. This led to another halving of the number of Border Patrol apprehensions from May to July.
The limits on asylum were part of a strategy by the Biden administration that aims to combine stricter consequences for illegal immigration with an expansion of legal pathways for migrants. As a result of these efforts, CBP is on track to record the lowest number of annual apprehensions along the Southwest border since fiscal year 2020.
Overall, the collaborative efforts between the U.S. and Mexico, along with the new limits on asylum, have significantly reduced the number of migrant apprehensions at border ports in 2024. While these measures have been effective in curbing irregular migration, concerns about human rights violations in Mexico and the impact of the asylum limits on vulnerable populations remain prevalent. It is essential for policymakers to continue to address these issues while working towards comprehensive immigration reform.