Voluntary Return: The Controversial Debut of Trump’s Self-Deportation Plan to Colombia and Honduras
By Alejandra Legarda – Journalist, Al Día News

With the departure of the first flight from Houston to Colombia and Honduras, Donald Trump's administration has officially launched its controversial voluntary self-deportation program—a migration policy that aims to reshape the narrative around the return of undocumented immigrants. The initiative, titled “Return Home,” repatriated 64 individuals—38 Hondurans and 26 Colombians—who chose to voluntarily leave the United States.

Announced by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the flight marks a milestone in the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) new migration strategy, as it was carried out without direct intervention from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which traditionally handles forced deportations. “Those who do not self-deport will face fines, arrest, deportation, and a permanent ban from reentry,” Noem warned at an official press conference (DHS, 2025) (Infobae, API).

The initiative includes notable incentives: a $1,000 stipend, logistical travel assistance, and the promise of maintaining eligibility for legal reentry into the U.S. The process can also be managed through the CBP Home app, eliminating the need for detention center processing. However, critics argue that the lack of clarity regarding actual legal reentry pathways leaves migrants in a legal gray zone. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) stated, “There are no guarantees that these individuals will be able to return, even if they meet all administrative requirements” (AILA Journal, 2025).

In Colombia, returnees were received by the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare (ICBF) and the Department for Social Prosperity (DPS), which provided reintegration and support programs. In Honduras, the “Brother, Sister, Come Back Home” plan offered economic aid packages, food vouchers, and job counseling, according to La Prensa in Tegucigalpa (2025).

With this inaugural flight, a new chapter in the migration debate begins: Is self-deportation a dignified alternative—or veiled coercion? Time will tell.