Encounters at the southern border fell 30% in April compared to 2023

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have released the illegal immigration statistics for April 2024. During this month, CBP recorded 128,900 encounters with undocumented people between ports of entry along the southwest border. The meetings were 6% lower than in March 2024 and 30% lower than in April 2023 (183,921).

Regarding national data, the office noted that in April 2023 there were 247,837 total encounters - including data from the Office of Field Operations (OFO) - compared to 276,036 recorded during the same period in 2023.

"As a result of this increased enforcement, southwest border encounters have not increased, bucking previous trends. We will remain vigilant to continually shifting migration patterns. We are still experiencing challenges along the borders and the nation’s immigration system is not appropriately resourced to handle them, so we continue to call on Congress to take action that would provide our personnel with additional resources and tools," said Troy A. Miller, acting commissioner of the Bureau of Customs.

In that sense, the office indicated that since the lifting of Title 42 from May 12, 2023 to April 30, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security has expelled or returned more than 720,000 people, the vast majority of whom crossed the southwest border, including more than 109,000 individual family members. Total expulsions and returns since mid-May 2023 exceed those of every full fiscal year since 2011.

41,400 processed by CBP One

Additionally, in April, CBP processed 41,400 individuals through appointments at ports of entry using advanced information submitted in CBP One™. This is a program in which people who lack sufficient documents for admission to the United States can schedule an appointment and remain in place until they show up at a preferred port of entry for their appointment.

Since the program began in January 2023 through the end of April 2024, more than 591,000 people have scheduled appointments to report to ports of entry. The main nationalities processed after his arrival for appointment are Cuban, Haitian, Honduran, Mexican and Venezuelan.

Meanwhile, at the national level in April, cocaine seizures increased by 95% compared to March. To date, CBP has seized more than 11,400 pounds of fentanyl. It also seized more fentanyl nationwide between the start of fiscal year 2023 and April 30, 2024 than in the previous five fiscal years combined.