How many people did the Border Patrol stop at the Mexico border each year?
Each bar shows the Border Patrol’s apprehensions at the border with Mexico in one fiscal year (October to September). An apprehension is one arrest, so a person stopped twice counts twice. From 21 Mar 2020 to 11 May 2023, the bars also count expulsions under a public health law: the lighter part of those bars.
Each bar is one fiscal year’s Border Patrol count.
Border Patrol apprehensions and expulsions at the Mexico border, each fiscal year.
The bars of Reagan 1, from left to right: 749,808 in FY1981; 745,820 in FY1982; 1,033,974 in FY1983; 1,058,276 in FY1984.The bars of Reagan 1, from left to right: 749,808 in FY1981; 745,820 in FY1982; 1,033,974 in FY1983; 1,058,276 in FY1984.The bars of Reagan 2, from left to right: 1,183,351 in FY1985; 1,615,844 in FY1986; 1,122,067 in FY1987; 942,561 in FY1988.The bars of Bush (H.W.), from left to right: 852,506 in FY1989; 1,049,321 in FY1990; 1,077,876 in FY1991; 1,145,574 in FY1992.The bars of Clinton 1, from left to right: 1,212,886 in FY1993; 979,101 in FY1994; 1,271,390 in FY1995; 1,507,020 in FY1996.The bars of Clinton 2, from left to right: 1,368,707 in FY1997; 1,516,680 in FY1998; 1,537,000 in FY1999; 1,643,679 in FY2000.The bars of Bush (W.) 1, from left to right: 1,235,718 in FY2001; 929,809 in FY2002; 905,065 in FY2003; 1,139,282 in FY2004.The bars of Bush (W.) 2, from left to right: 1,171,396 in FY2005; 1,071,972 in FY2006; 858,638 in FY2007; 705,005 in FY2008.The bars of Obama 1, from left to right: 540,865 in FY2009; 447,731 in FY2010; 327,577 in FY2011; 356,873 in FY2012.The bars of Obama 2, from left to right: 414,397 in FY2013; 479,371 in FY2014; 331,333 in FY2015; 408,870 in FY2016.The bars of Trump 1, from left to right: 303,916 in FY2017; 396,579 in FY2018; 851,508 in FY2019; 400,651 in FY2020.The bars of Biden, from left to right: 1,659,206 in FY2021; 2,206,436 in FY2022; 2,045,838 in FY2023; 1,530,523 in FY2024.The bar of Trump 2: 237,538 in FY2025. Measure: Border Patrol apprehensions under immigration law, plus expulsions under a public health law while it applied. Source: US Customs and Border Protection, United States Border Patrol, Southwest Border Sectors; later years: US Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Land Border Encounters (Border Patrol). Green cards and new citizens: DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics (INS before 2003), Yearbook of Immigration Statistics.
Trump 1: the marked bar, FY2020, is the Border Patrol’s whole count: darker for apprehensions under immigration law, lighter for expulsions under a public health law, which CBP counts on its own. CBP: “Title 42 expulsions began March 21, 2020, and ended on May 11, 2023.”
Biden: the marked bars, FY2021 to FY2023, are split the same way.
These numbers show what happened during each term. Congress, the courts, the states, the Federal Reserve and events abroad also move them.
How we counted
Each bar is one fiscal year, from October to September. A fiscal year counts for the president in office for most of its days, so each term holds four. A term’s first one began nearly four months before the term did, and its last months count for the next term. Every term gets the same rule.
Trump 2: FY2025 began in October 2024, before this term began. FY2026 ended in September 2026. Its count isn’t in the CBP files this chart uses yet.
What the bars count
Each apprehension is one arrest by a Border Patrol agent of someone who crossed the border with Mexico away from an official crossing point. These are events, so a person stopped twice counts twice. People stopped at official crossing points aren’t in the bars. From 21 Mar 2020 to 11 May 2023, the Border Patrol also sent some people back at once under a public health law. CBP calls these expulsions and counts them on their own. In those years each bar is CBP’s total of both: the darker part is the apprehensions and the lighter part is the expulsions. So every bar counts every person stopped, each time.
The CBP files
- Border Patrol apprehensions at the Southwest border, Title 8, by fiscal year, FY1980-FY2019 (Border Patrol table, PDF). US Customs and Border Protection, United States Border Patrol, Southwest Border Sectors
- Border Patrol apprehensions at the Southwest border, Title 8, by fiscal year, FY2019-FY2022 (CBP file FY19-FY22). US Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Land Border Encounters (Border Patrol). sbo-encounters-fy19-fy22.csv: Component=U.S. Border Patrol, Title of Authority=Title 8, summed by fiscal year
- Border Patrol apprehensions at the Southwest border, Title 8, by fiscal year, FY2022-FY2025 (CBP file FY22-FY25). US Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Land Border Encounters (Border Patrol). sbo-encounters-fy22-fy25.csv: Component=U.S. Border Patrol, Title of Authority=Title 8, summed by fiscal year
- Border Patrol encounters at the Southwest border, Title 8 apprehensions and Title 42 expulsions together, by fiscal year, FY2020-FY2023 (CBP file FY20-FY23). US Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Land Border Encounters (Border Patrol). sbo-encounters-fy20-fy23.csv: Component=U.S. Border Patrol, every Title of Authority (Title 8 and Title 42), summed by fiscal year
Two years appear in two files each (FY2019, 851,508 in the first file and 851,508 in the second; FY2022, 1,152,352 in the second file and 1,152,352 in the third). If the two values ever differ, the build stops.
The fourth file is CBP’s own total for FY2020 to FY2023, apprehensions and expulsions together. In those years the bar is this total, and its darker part is the apprehensions from the files above. If a total is ever smaller than its apprehensions, the build stops.
Every bar as a number
| Term | First year | Second year | Third year | Fourth year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reagan 1 | 749,808FY1981 | 745,820FY1982 | 1,033,974FY1983 | 1,058,276FY1984 |
| Reagan 2 | 1,183,351FY1985 | 1,615,844FY1986 | 1,122,067FY1987 | 942,561FY1988 |
| Bush (H.W.) | 852,506FY1989 | 1,049,321FY1990 | 1,077,876FY1991 | 1,145,574FY1992 |
| Clinton 1 | 1,212,886FY1993 | 979,101FY1994 | 1,271,390FY1995 | 1,507,020FY1996 |
| Clinton 2 | 1,368,707FY1997 | 1,516,680FY1998 | 1,537,000FY1999 | 1,643,679FY2000 |
| Bush (W.) 1 | 1,235,718FY2001 | 929,809FY2002 | 905,065FY2003 | 1,139,282FY2004 |
| Bush (W.) 2 | 1,171,396FY2005 | 1,071,972FY2006 | 858,638FY2007 | 705,005FY2008 |
| Obama 1 | 540,865FY2009 | 447,731FY2010 | 327,577FY2011 | 356,873FY2012 |
| Obama 2 | 414,397FY2013 | 479,371FY2014 | 331,333FY2015 | 408,870FY2016 |
| Trump 1 | 303,916FY2017 | 396,579FY2018 | 851,508FY2019 | 400,651FY2020203,608 under immigration law |
| Biden | 1,659,206FY2021618,986 under immigration law | 2,206,436FY20221,152,352 under immigration law | 2,045,838FY20231,496,067 under immigration law | 1,530,523FY2024 |
| Trump 2 | 237,538FY2025 | the term is still running | ||
Green cards and new citizens
A green card lets a person live and work in the US permanently. Some people who got one in a given year had just arrived, while others already lived in the US. New citizens are people who were naturalized. That means they became US citizens. Both counts come from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which rounds each number to the nearest ten to protect privacy.
| Term | First year | Second year | Third year | Fourth year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reagan 1 | 595,010FY1981 | 533,620FY1982 | 550,050FY1983 | 541,810FY1984 |
| Reagan 2 | 568,150FY1985 | 600,030FY1986 | 599,890FY1987 | 641,350FY1988 |
| Bush (H.W.) | 1,090,170FY1989 | 1,535,870FY1990 | 1,826,600FY1991 | 973,450FY1992 |
| Clinton 1 | 903,920FY1993 | 803,990FY1994 | 720,180FY1995 | 915,560FY1996 |
| Clinton 2 | 797,850FY1997 | 653,210FY1998 | 644,790FY1999 | 841,000FY2000 |
| Bush (W.) 1 | 1,058,900FY2001 | 1,059,360FY2002 | 703,540FY2003 | 957,880FY2004 |
| Bush (W.) 2 | 1,122,260FY2005 | 1,266,130FY2006 | 1,052,420FY2007 | 1,107,130FY2008 |
| Obama 1 | 1,130,820FY2009 | 1,042,630FY2010 | 1,062,040FY2011 | 1,031,630FY2012 |
| Obama 2 | 990,550FY2013 | 1,016,520FY2014 | 1,051,030FY2015 | 1,183,510FY2016 |
| Trump 1 | 1,127,170FY2017 | 1,096,610FY2018 | 1,031,770FY2019 | 707,360FY2020 |
| Biden | 740,000FY2021 | 1,018,350FY2022 | 1,172,910FY2023 | 1,364,090FY2024 |
| Trump 2 | not published yet | |||
| Term | First year | Second year | Third year | Fourth year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reagan 1 | 164,390FY1981 | 141,000FY1982 | 178,420FY1983 | 195,860FY1984 |
| Reagan 2 | 242,450FY1985 | 279,500FY1986 | 223,250FY1987 | 240,780FY1988 |
| Bush (H.W.) | 232,660FY1989 | 267,590FY1990 | 307,390FY1991 | 239,660FY1992 |
| Clinton 1 | 313,590FY1993 | 429,120FY1994 | 485,720FY1995 | 1,040,990FY1996 |
| Clinton 2 | 596,010FY1997 | 461,170FY1998 | 837,420FY1999 | 886,030FY2000 |
| Bush (W.) 1 | 606,260FY2001 | 572,650FY2002 | 462,440FY2003 | 537,150FY2004 |
| Bush (W.) 2 | 604,280FY2005 | 702,590FY2006 | 660,480FY2007 | 1,046,540FY2008 |
| Obama 1 | 743,720FY2009 | 619,910FY2010 | 694,190FY2011 | 757,430FY2012 |
| Obama 2 | 779,930FY2013 | 653,420FY2014 | 730,260FY2015 | 753,060FY2016 |
| Trump 1 | 707,270FY2017 | 761,900FY2018 | 843,590FY2019 | 628,250FY2020 |
| Biden | 813,860FY2021 | 969,380FY2022 | 878,460FY2023 | 818,570FY2024 |
| Trump 2 | not published yet | |||
Removals and returns
DHS also counts people it sends out of the US. A removal follows a formal order. A return doesn’t. The two count different things, so the table keeps them in two columns, and each row shows the last year of the term that DHS has published.
| Term | Year | Removals | Returns |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reagan 1 | FY1984 | 18,700 | 909,830 |
| Reagan 2 | FY1988 | 25,830 | 911,790 |
| Bush (H.W.) | FY1992 | 43,670 | 1,105,830 |
| Clinton 1 | FY1996 | 69,680 | 1,573,430 |
| Clinton 2 | FY2000 | 188,470 | 1,675,880 |
| Bush (W.) 1 | FY2004 | 240,670 | 1,166,580 |
| Bush (W.) 2 | FY2008 | 359,800 | 811,260 |
| Obama 1 | FY2012 | 415,580 | 183,740 |
| Obama 2 | FY2016 | 331,550 | 76,110 |
| Trump 1 | FY2020 | 234,510 | 53,390 |
| Biden | FY2023FY2024 not published yet | 183,360 | 289,070 |
| Trump 2 | not published yet | ||
DHS changed what the returns count includes in FY2009 (Obama 1) and FY2018 (Trump 1). DHS: “Administrative returns include crew members detained on board their vessels since 2009 and also include administrative withdrawals in 2018 - 2023.”
People living in the US without legal status
Nobody counts these people. DHS estimates them from a Census Bureau survey, the American Community Survey (ACS), in thousands of people at the start of each year. Each row below starts from a new base, so the rows are never joined, and no term gets a number of its own.
| Estimate | Year and number, in thousands |
|---|---|
| Based on the 2000 Census (2000, 2005–2010) | 2000: 8,460; 2005: 10,490; 2006: 11,310; 2007: 11,780; 2008: 11,600; 2009: 10,750; 2010: 10,790 |
| Based on the 2010 Census (2010–2015) | 2010: 11,590; 2011: 11,510; 2012: 11,430; 2013: 11,210; 2014: 11,460; 2015: 11,960 |
| Method Update (2015–2018) | 2015: 11,440; 2016: 11,750; 2017: 11,410; 2018: 11,390 |
| Method Update (2018–2020) | 2018: 11,570; 2019: 11,110; 2020: 10,510 |
| Based on the 2020 Census (2022) | 2022: 10,990 |
DHS’s statistics office (OHSS): “Readers should exercise caution when describing changes in these estimates over time because some year-to-year variation may reflect sampling error in the ACS and/or non-sampling error in the estimation method (see Appendix), and OHSS does not have a methodology to evaluate the statistical significance of these fluctuations.”
Recessions
The recession months follow the dates of the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), the group that dates US recessions. NBER counts a recession from the month after the economy’s high point (the peak) through the month of its low point (the trough). Each month counts for the term it falls in, so a recession that runs across two terms counts in both, each with its own months. Source: National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Business Cycle Dating Committee.
What this chart asks
Each bar is one fiscal year’s count of Border Patrol stops at the border with Mexico, away from official crossing points. A stop under immigration law is an apprehension, and a person stopped twice counts twice. In FY2020 to FY2023, CBP also counted expulsions under a public health law, so each bar is CBP’s total of both.
1 of 6
How the years are grouped
A fiscal year runs from October to September. It counts for the president in office for over half of its days, so a full term holds four bars. The label under a term’s first bar names its first fiscal year.
2 of 6
How to read one term
The bars of Reagan 1, from left to right: 749,808 in FY1981; 745,820 in FY1982; 1,033,974 in FY1983; 1,058,276 in FY1984.The bars of Reagan 1, from left to right: 749,808 in FY1981; 745,820 in FY1982; 1,033,974 in FY1983; 1,058,276 in FY1984.The bars of Reagan 2, from left to right: 1,183,351 in FY1985; 1,615,844 in FY1986; 1,122,067 in FY1987; 942,561 in FY1988.The bars of Bush (H.W.), from left to right: 852,506 in FY1989; 1,049,321 in FY1990; 1,077,876 in FY1991; 1,145,574 in FY1992.The bars of Clinton 1, from left to right: 1,212,886 in FY1993; 979,101 in FY1994; 1,271,390 in FY1995; 1,507,020 in FY1996.The bars of Clinton 2, from left to right: 1,368,707 in FY1997; 1,516,680 in FY1998; 1,537,000 in FY1999; 1,643,679 in FY2000.The bars of Bush (W.) 1, from left to right: 1,235,718 in FY2001; 929,809 in FY2002; 905,065 in FY2003; 1,139,282 in FY2004.The bars of Bush (W.) 2, from left to right: 1,171,396 in FY2005; 1,071,972 in FY2006; 858,638 in FY2007; 705,005 in FY2008.The bars of Obama 1, from left to right: 540,865 in FY2009; 447,731 in FY2010; 327,577 in FY2011; 356,873 in FY2012.The bars of Obama 2, from left to right: 414,397 in FY2013; 479,371 in FY2014; 331,333 in FY2015; 408,870 in FY2016.The bars of Trump 1, from left to right: 303,916 in FY2017; 396,579 in FY2018; 851,508 in FY2019; 400,651 in FY2020.The bars of Biden, from left to right: 1,659,206 in FY2021; 2,206,436 in FY2022; 2,045,838 in FY2023; 1,530,523 in FY2024.The bar of Trump 2: 237,538 in FY2025. Mark another term and this example follows your mark.
3 of 6
The rows under each name
Under each name: the term’s own years, then three counts from its final fiscal year: the Border Patrol count, green cards and new citizens. The last row gives the months of recession inside the term, by NBER’s dates. That row gives dates only.
4 of 6
Bars to read with care
Trump 1 and Biden: in FY2020 to FY2023, each bar has two parts. The darker part is apprehensions under immigration law; the lighter part is expulsions under a public health law.
Trump 2 is still running, so its bar is striped and ends at FY2025.
5 of 6
What the chart can’t say
These numbers show what happened during each term. Congress, the courts, the states, the Federal Reserve and events abroad also move them. How we counted, under the chart, sets out the rule in full, the CBP files and every bar as a number.
6 of 6
Each term’s numbers
The numbers behind the chart above, as a table for every term, in time order and measured the same way. The median is the middle value of the terms measured.
| Term | Period counted | Count in each fiscal year |
|---|---|---|
| Reagan 1 | FY1981 to FY1984 | FY1981 749,808FY1982 745,820FY1983 1,033,974FY1984 1,058,276 |
| Reagan 2 | FY1985 to FY1988 | FY1985 1,183,351FY1986 1,615,844FY1987 1,122,067FY1988 942,561 |
| Bush (H.W.) | FY1989 to FY1992 | FY1989 852,506FY1990 1,049,321FY1991 1,077,876FY1992 1,145,574 |
| Clinton 1 | FY1993 to FY1996 | FY1993 1,212,886FY1994 979,101FY1995 1,271,390FY1996 1,507,020 |
| Clinton 2 | FY1997 to FY2000 | FY1997 1,368,707FY1998 1,516,680FY1999 1,537,000FY2000 1,643,679 |
| Bush (W.) 1 | FY2001 to FY2004 | FY2001 1,235,718FY2002 929,809FY2003 905,065FY2004 1,139,282 |
| Bush (W.) 2 | FY2005 to FY2008 | FY2005 1,171,396FY2006 1,071,972FY2007 858,638FY2008 705,005 |
| Obama 1 | FY2009 to FY2012 | FY2009 540,865FY2010 447,731FY2011 327,577FY2012 356,873 |
| Obama 2 | FY2013 to FY2016 | FY2013 414,397FY2014 479,371FY2015 331,333FY2016 408,870 |
| Trump 1 | FY2017 to FY2020 | FY2017 303,916FY2018 396,579FY2019 851,508FY2020 400,651 (203,608 under immigration law) |
| Biden | FY2021 to FY2024 | FY2021 1,659,206 (618,986 under immigration law)FY2022 2,206,436 (1,152,352 under immigration law)FY2023 2,045,838 (1,496,067 under immigration law)FY2024 1,530,523 |
| Trump 2 so far | FY2025 | FY2025 237,538 |
How we counted, in short
- Border Patrol stops at the Mexico border: the chart shows the count of each fiscal year the term holds. In the years when Title 42 applied, the count also holds its expulsions. Series: Border Patrol apprehensions at the Southwest border, Title 8, by fiscal year, FY1980-FY2019 (Border Patrol table, PDF); Border Patrol apprehensions at the Southwest border, Title 8, by fiscal year, FY2019-FY2022 (CBP file FY19-FY22); Border Patrol apprehensions at the Southwest border, Title 8, by fiscal year, FY2022-FY2025 (CBP file FY22-FY25). Source: US Customs and Border Protection, United States Border Patrol, Southwest Border Sectors; DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics (INS before 2003), Yearbook of Immigration Statistics; US Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Land Border Encounters (Border Patrol).
Download this topic’s data (CSV)Every row of every series these tables read, from the first period a term counts, as each agency publishes it.