US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recorded more than 483,000 deportations and over 491,000 arrests in the 2026 fiscal year, setting new records as President Donald Trump’s administration stepped up its immigration enforcement drive, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on November 12.
According to DHS, ICE deported 483,200 people in fiscal year 2026, which ended on September 30. This exceeded the previous annual record of 442,640 deportations set in FY25. The agency also reported more than 491,000 arrests, including nearly 475,000 administrative arrests, describing both figures as the highest in its history.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced the figures, saying that September 2026 had been the agency’s best September for arrests. He credited Trump’s leadership for the increase in enforcement activity.
“The total number of ICE arrests in Fiscal Year 2026 was more than all three full fiscal years under Biden combined,” Mullin said.
Arrests and deportations surpass Biden-era figures
The department said the 483,200 deportations recorded in FY26 were nearly equivalent to the combined 486,000 removals during FY22, FY23 and FY24 under former President Joe Biden. The figure was also more than eight times the approximately 59,000 removals recorded in FY21, Biden’s first fiscal year in office.
ICE’s arrest tally similarly exceeded the combined total of fewer than 427,000 arrests recorded during FY22, FY23 and FY24. The FY26 figure was more than six times the approximately 74,000 arrests reported in FY21.
Additional figures reported by the Associated Press show that the FY26 deportation total was 78% higher than the 271,480 removals recorded in 2024, Biden’s last year in office. ICE arrests during that year stood at 113,430, compared with 474,850 administrative arrests in FY26.
The figures relate specifically to ICE enforcement activity and do not account for every immigration-related departure from the US.
September records follow successive monthly highs
ICE recorded more than 48,000 arrests and 44,000 removals in September 2026, according to DHS. The department said the month's arrest figure was more than 300% higher than the average for September during the Biden administration.
The September numbers followed a series of monthly records. ICE reported 50,925 arrests in August, surpassing the previous monthly high of 50,208 recorded in July. June had also seen a high of 43,900 arrests.
The department further claimed that more than three million migrants had left the US under Trump’s administration. As of October, it reported nearly 1.2 million deportations and more than 1.25 million arrests.
Questions over transparency of enforcement data
The latest figures come amid the Trump administration’s continued emphasis on removing migrants without legal status. However, the Associated Press noted that the figures released by DHS did not provide a breakdown of how many of those arrested or deported had criminal histories, a detail reported by previous administrations.
The announcement marks another record for ICE as the administration expands its immigration enforcement operations across the country.