US Government Offers Migrant Kids $2.5K to Self-Deport

The Trump administration said on Friday that it would pay migrant children $2,500 to voluntarily return to their home countries, dangling a new incentive in efforts to persuade people to self-deport. Immigration and Customs Enforcement didn't say how much migrants would get or when the offer would take effect, but the AP obtained an email to migrant shelters saying children 14 years of age and older would get $2,500 each. Children were given 24 hours to respond.

The notice to shelters from the Health and Human Services Department's Administration for Children and Families didn't indicate any consequences for children who decline the offer. It asked shelter directors to acknowledge the offer within four hours. ICE said in a statement that the offer would initially be for 17-year-olds. "Any payment to support a return home would be provided after an immigration judge grants the request and the individual arrives in their country of origin," ICE said. "Access to financial support when returning home would assist should they choose that option."

ICE, the Department of Homeland Security, and the HHS didn't immediately respond to questions about the amount of the payment and age eligibility. ICE dismissed widespread reports among immigration lawyers and advocates that it was launching a much broader crackdown on Friday to deport migrant children who entered the country without their parents, an operation reportedly dubbed "Freaky Friday." The administration has also offered $1,000 to adults who voluntarily leave the country.

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Advocates said $2,500 may prevent children from making truly informed decisions. "For a child, $2,500 might be the most money they've ever seen in their life, and that may make it very, very difficult for them to accurately weigh the long-term risks of taking voluntary departure versus trying to stay in the United States and going through the immigration court process to get relief that they may be legally entitled to," said Melissa Adamson of the National Center for Youth Law. Murad Awawdeh, president of the New York Immigration Coalition, echoed concerns about the offer, saying it "pressures children to abandon their legal claims and return to a life of fear and danger without ever receiving a fair hearing."