ICE Arrests and Deportations Reach Records in Fiscal 2026, DHS Says
Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. (DHS photo by Tia Dufour)
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement recorded its highest annual totals for arrests and deportations in fiscal year 2026, carrying out more than 491,000 arrests and 483,200 deportations, the Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday.
The figures, released by DHS, represent a new annual deportation record for ICE and a significant increase in immigration enforcement during President Donald Trump’s administration.
ICE deported 483,200 people in fiscal year 2026, which ended Sept. 30, surpassing the previous record of 442,640 deportations in fiscal year 2025, according to the department.
The agency said its fiscal 2026 deportation total was nearly equal to the combined 486,000 deportations recorded during fiscal years 2022, 2023 and 2024, the three full fiscal years under President Joe Biden. The fiscal 2026 figure was also more than eight times the approximately 59,000 deportations recorded in fiscal 2021, Biden’s first year in office.
Arrests and Deportations Reach Historic Levels
ICE recorded more than 491,000 arrests during fiscal 2026, including nearly 475,000 administrative arrests, according to DHS. The department described the administrative arrest figure as the highest in the agency’s history.
The annual arrest total exceeded the fewer than 427,000 arrests recorded during fiscal years 2022 through 2024 combined, DHS said. It was also more than six times the approximately 74,000 arrests recorded in fiscal 2021.
In September alone, ICE made more than 48,000 arrests and carried out approximately 44,000 removals. DHS said the September arrest total was more than 300 percent higher than the average for the same month during the Biden administration.
Monthly Arrests Set Records During the Summer
The department also reported consecutive monthly arrest records during the summer. ICE recorded 43,900 arrests in June, followed by 50,208 in July and 50,925 in August.
The August figure surpassed the previous monthly record set in July, according to DHS. The department said September also marked the highest number of arrests for that month in the agency’s history.
DHS Credits Trump Policies for Expanded Enforcement
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin praised ICE employees and credited the administration’s policies for the increase in enforcement activity.
“I couldn’t be prouder of the brave men and women of ICE, who just broke more historic records,” Mullin said in the department’s announcement.
He said the administration had given ICE greater authority to pursue immigration arrests and deportations, describing the enforcement effort as part of its broader public-safety agenda.
DHS also said that more than 3 million migrants had left the United States under Trump’s leadership. As of October, the department reported nearly 1.2 million deportations and more than 1.25 million arrests.
The announcement did not provide a detailed breakdown of those broader figures or explain how many of the people who left the country did so voluntarily.
Agency Highlights Cases Involving Serious Criminal Charges
The department also publicized 10 cases involving people arrested by ICE during fiscal 2026, emphasizing allegations and convictions involving serious crimes.
Among those identified was Aman Kumar, an Indian national arrested in Fresno, California, in May. DHS said he had been charged with felony hit-and-run after an April accident that injured a 4-year-old boy.
Another Indian national, Rajinder Kumar, was arrested in April after being charged with criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment in connection with a truck crash in Oregon that killed a newlywed couple, according to DHS.
The department also cited the arrest of Georgii Gabiev, a Russian national, in Brooklyn, New York, in June. DHS said Gabiev had pleaded guilty to criminal vehicular homicide in connection with a 2024 crash in Minnesota that killed a truck driver.
Other cases involved people from Mexico, Laos, Honduras, Venezuela, Brazil, the United Kingdom and Russia. The allegations included homicide, sexual assault, weapons offenses and animal cruelty. Some of the individuals had prior criminal convictions, while others were facing pending charges.