$998 per day: US targets immigrants who ignore deportation orders

US has also warned that property could be seized if the fines are not paid

In the latest attack on migrants, the Trump administration has brought back a rarely enforced law to fine undocumented individuals up to $998 a day if they remain in the United States after receiving a deportation order. Officials have also warned that property could be seized if the fines are not paid.

 

“Illegal aliens should use the CBP Home app to self-deport and leave the country now. If they don’t, they will face the consequences. This includes a fine of $998 per day for every day that the illegal alien overstayed their final deportation order,” the US Department of Homeland Security posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday.

 

The law, introduced in 1996, was first enforced in 2018 under Donald Trump’s presidency. The administration now plans to apply the fines retroactively for up to five years, which could push individual penalties above $1 million.

 

Tricia McLaughlin, spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, confirmed the government would also pursue property seizures from those who fail to pay. “If they don't, they will face the consequences,” said McLaughlin. “This includes a fine of $998 per day for every day that the illegal alien overstayed their final deportation order.”

 

Impact on Indian immigrants

 

Indians make up one of the largest undocumented groups in the US. Pew Research Center estimated 725,000 undocumented Indians in 2022, ranking them third after Mexicans and Salvadorans. The Migration Policy Institute gave a lower figure of 375,000, putting India fifth among origin countries.

 

Since January 2025, the US has deported more than 600 Indian nationals.

 

The fine, at current exchange rates, amounts to nearly Rs 86,000 per day.

 

Kathleen Bush-Joseph, an immigration attorney at the Migration Policy Institute, posted on X: “Migrants who came into the US via the CBP One app are receiving parole termination notices & being told to leave immediately. 900k+ people entered this way under the Biden admin.”

 

White House pressure

 

During his first term, Trump used the 1996 law to impose hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines on nine migrants who had sought sanctuary in churches. Those fines were later withdrawn, but smaller penalties of around $60,000 each were enforced on at least four individuals, according to court records.

 

President Joe Biden stopped issuing the fines and rescinded related policies when he took office in 2021.