Illegal crossings along the US-Mexico border plummeted to a 55-year low in fiscal year 2025 — and the vast majority of unlawful attempts to enter the country took place during the final months of the Biden administration.
Federal authorities apprehended 237,565 illegal immigrants along the southwest border between Oct. 1, 2024 and Sept. 30, 2025, according to data released Tuesday by the Department of Homeland Security and US Customs and Border Protection.
The figure is the lowest fiscal year total for apprehensions since 1970, when authorities caught 201,780 illegal immigrants attempting to cross the US-Mexico border. It is also 87% less than the average number of apprehensions over the last four fiscal years, which was about 1.86 million.
“We have had the most secure border in American history and our end of year numbers prove it,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. “We have shattered multiple records this year and once again we have broken a new record with the lowest number of Southwest border apprehensions in 55 years. Under President Trump, we have empowered and supported our law enforcement to do their job and they have delivered.”
Most of the apprehensions in fiscal year 2025 occurred during the final three months of the Biden administration. Between 2021 and 2024, an average of about 2.4 million illegal immigrants poured into the country every year under Biden.
During the first 111 days of the fiscal year when former President Joe Biden was still in office, border agents apprehended 172,026 individuals—72% of the 2025 total. Over the next 254 days under the Trump administration, agents recorded just 65,539 apprehensions, or 27% of the year’s total.
The White House called the numbers a historic victory for American sovereignty and safety.
“President Donald J. Trump’s relentless commitment to securing our homeland has crushed illegal crossings at the southern border to the lowest level in over 50 years — another historic victory for American sovereignty and safety under President Trump’s leadership,” the White House said in a statement. “After Biden-era chaos unleashed a record-shattering invasion, the seismic turnaround proves that strong leadership can, in fact, stop the flood of illegal crossings, deadly cartels, and security threats dead in their tracks.”
The change represents a dramatic shift from record-high levels under the Biden administration. In fiscal year 2022, Border Patrol made 2.2 million apprehensions at the southern border—a record and almost 10 times the levels recorded in 2025.
Over Trump’s first full eight months in office, Border Patrol agents assigned to the southern border recorded fewer than 9,000 apprehensions each month. Under Biden, the agency recorded that number in 24-hour periods during some days.
For September, apprehensions along the southwest border totaled about 8,400, up from 6,300 in August and the July record-low monthly total of 4,600.
For the fifth consecutive month, authorities released zero migrants into the US throughout September. Under Biden, 9,144 migrants were released into the country in September 2024 alone.
President Trump acted quickly to seal the southern border upon taking office in January. He deployed thousands of troops to deter illegal crossings, moved to suspend asylum claims, and overhauled Biden-era immigration policies.
Trump has also tasked Immigration and Customs Enforcement with apprehending and deporting illegal migrants in the interior of the country. ICE is on track to deport 600,000 illegal immigrants this year. More than 2 million illegal immigrants have voluntarily left the country since January, according to DHS data.