A study has shown that during President Donald Trump’s one-year term in office in the United States, the number of migrants entering the U.S. through Mexico has fallen to its lowest level in the past 50 years. According to the Pew Research Center, the number of people entering the U.S. from the Mexico border in a single year is the lowest recorded in five decades.

Based on federal government data, Pew Research Center’s analysis states that 237,538 migrants entered the United States at the U.S.–Mexico border during the 2025 fiscal year starting from January 20, 2025. However, the data does not specify how many of them were arrested, detained, jailed, or deported.

In contrast, during the previous year under President Joe Biden’s administration, more than 1.5 million migrants entered the U.S. in fiscal year 2024, more than 2 million in fiscal year 2023, and a record-breaking more than 2.2 million in fiscal year 2022. Based on these figures, the number of migrants entering the U.S. after Trump took office represents the lowest level in 50 years. According to historical Border Patrol data, the study claims that no fiscal year since 1970 has recorded fewer migrant entries than 2025.

The sharp decline in migrant entries is attributed to policy changes implemented in both the United States and Mexico during the Trump administration. In April 2024, then-U.S. President Joe Biden and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced an agreement to strengthen immigration enforcement. Mexico’s increased enforcement reportedly played a significant role in reducing migrant flows toward the United States. In June and again in September 2024, the Biden administration also imposed new restrictions on migrants seeking asylum in the U.S. Even at that time, the number of undocumented migrants entering the U.S. had begun to decline. After Trump assumed office, the number reportedly dropped even more sharply.

Immediately after returning to office in January 2025, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency at the southwestern border and directed the U.S. military to assist with border security. The administration also shut down a Biden-era mobile application that allowed migrants to apply for asylum.

The Trump administration not only introduced sweeping legal changes to prevent migrants from entering the U.S. and to arrest and deport those already inside the country, but also carried out large-scale enforcement operations, which are still ongoing. Due to these enforcement actions, the Trump administration has faced hundreds of lawsuits, according to reports. Studies also note that the administration has encountered legal obstacles in several cases.

According to U.S. government data, during President Trump’s one-year term, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security reported that approximately 605,000 people have been deported since January 20, 2025. However, this figure may also include individuals who were turned back at the border or at airports, and detailed public breakdowns remain unclear.

Independent research organizations estimate that around 350,000 actual deportations have taken place since Trump assumed office, focusing primarily on removals carried out by law enforcement agencies. Another analysis suggests that by the end of 2025, the Trump administration was on track to deport approximately 600,000 undocumented immigrants. Some reports, including those by The New York Times, estimate a combined total of around 540,000 deportations from both the interior of the U.S. and the border between January 20, 2025, and January 20, 2026.

It is worth noting that the U.S.–Mexico border is approximately 1,734 miles long, and thousands of people attempt to enter the United States through this border daily. Of this total length, about 741 miles of border wall have already been constructed.