Deportation is the process by which the federal government strips noncitizens of their legal status in the United States and expels them from the country. It is a complex and costly process that requires significant governmental resources.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the agency responsible for carrying out deportations. Generally, the agency arrests removable noncitizens who have been identified as a priority for deportation and transfers them to ICE custody for processing. Once in custody, an individual is placed into removal proceedings unless they qualify for some form of relief, such as asylum or cancellation of removal. Alternatively, an immigrant may depart the country voluntarily prior to deportation. In fiscal year 2024, ICE deported approximately 2 million people, though some of those deportations were expedited or were the result of voluntary departures.
In removal proceedings, an immigration judge reviews an immigrant’s case to determine whether they should be removed from the United States. The judge can order deportation, reinstate an order of removal, or permit the individual to leave voluntarily and apply to return legally to the United States at a later date. A person can be placed into removal proceedings for various reasons, including an underlying criminal conviction or a violation of US immigration law. The most common reason for removal is an unaccompanied minor, meaning a child without a parent or guardian.
Several major industries depend on undocumented workers, and mass deportations would put those industries at risk of disruption and collapse. This would lead to labor shortages and higher prices that would burden all Americans. Undocumented workers are particularly important in agriculture, construction, and hospitality, where they account for up to 30 percent of the workforce and nearly half of all graders and sorters of agricultural products.
When the DHS deports someone, it disrupts the lives of their family members, community, and the broader society. Families are separated, inflicting profound trauma and creating lasting psychological and emotional scars. Communities are stressed by the presence of weaponized enforcement and the fear that their neighbors might be targeted next. This climate of fear and anxiety would affect all Americans, not just those living in the affected neighborhoods, because it changes the way Americans view their government and contributes to an atmosphere of vigilantism and hate crimes.
Mass deportation would cost hundreds of billions in federal, state, and local tax revenues and trillions of dollars in lost economic output. The direct costs of deportation fall primarily on American taxpayers, but all Americans would bear the long-term burden of reduced economic growth and job loss that results from the mass removal of so many skilled and productive workers. It is difficult to quantify the costs, but we can make some sense of them. This report focuses on the 8.5 million mixed-status households — households with one or more American citizens and one or more individuals who are undocumented. These families would face enormous hardship from the loss of a breadwinner.