Will take back all illegal Indian immigrants from US: Modi promises Trump

Those who stay in other countries illegally do not have any legal right to be there, Modi said in a press conference in the US

India has agreed to take back its nationals who entered the United States illegally. “Those staying illegally in other countries have no legal right to remain there. As for India and the US, we have always maintained that if someone is verified as an Indian citizen and is living in the US illegally, India is ready to take them back,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday during a press conference on his US visit.

 

However, while previous US-India discussions estimated around 18,000 Indians living illegally in the US, the Indian government told Parliament on Thursday that it does not maintain official data on the number of undocumented Indians in the country.

 

 

India is one of the largest sources of immigrants to the US, with many working in the tech sector on work visas, while others live in the country without legal status.

 

Conflicting estimates on undocumented Indians  

 

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, responding to a query in the Rajya Sabha, said India does not have data on undocumented Indian immigrants in the US because these individuals legally exited India but later overstayed their visas or entered the US without valid documents.  

 

“The government of India does not have data on the number of undocumented Indian immigrants residing in the United States. The reason is that these immigrants have legally exited India but have either overstayed their US visa validity or have entered the US illegally or without valid documents,” Singh said.  

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala had questioned whether the government had figures on undocumented Indian migrants and any plan to address potential deportations due to recent US immigration policy changes under Trump.  

 

Research groups have presented differing figures:  

 

Pew Research Center estimated 725,000 undocumented Indians in the US as of 2022, making them the third-largest group after Mexico and El Salvador.  

Migration Policy Institute (MPI) placed the number at 375,000, ranking India fifth among origin countries.  

 

Undocumented immigrants account for 3% of the US population and 22% of the foreign-born population, according to US immigration data.  

 

Modi's assurance to the US  

 

The Indian government’s response came just hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President Trump, where he reaffirmed that India would take back all verified undocumented immigrants.

 

At a press conference in the US, Modi addressed the issue, stating that India is willing to accept its nationals who have no legal right to stay abroad.  

 

“Those who stay in other countries illegally do not have any legal right to be there. As far as India and the US are concerned, we have always said that those who are verified and are truly the citizens of India – if they live in the US illegally, India is ready to take them back,” Modi said.  

 

He also pointed to the need to dismantle networks that mislead people into illegal migration.  

 

“But it doesn't stop just there for us. These are people from ordinary families. They are shown big dreams and most of them are misled and brought here. So, we should attack this entire system of human trafficking,” Modi said.  

 

He called for joint efforts by India and the US to eliminate the networks behind illegal migration.  

 

“Together, it should be the effort of the US and India to destroy such an ecosystem from its roots so that human trafficking ends. Our bigger fight is against that entire system, and we are confident that President Trump will fully cooperate with India in finishing this ecosystem,” he added.  

 

Surge in illegal crossings and asylum applications  

 

The number of illegal US border apprehensions of Indians rose from 1,000 in 2020 to 43,000 in 2023, according to findings by political scientist Devesh Kapur and PhD scholar Abby Budiman, published by Johns Hopkins University.  

 

Key findings include:  

< The total number of undocumented Indian migrants in the US has declined, but the rate of new arrivals has surged.  

< Asylum applications from Indian nationals jumped from 5,000 in 2021 to 51,000 in 2023.  

< The main entry points have shifted, with more Indian migrants crossing into the US via Canada’s northern border rather than through Mexico.  

< Punjabi speakers form the largest group among undocumented Indian migrants.