The provision of free travel and financial incentives is part of Project Homecoming, an initiative rolled out by DHS in 2025. Representational image: iStock
Taj Mahal featured in US DHS self-deportation campaign offering USD 2,600 incentive
US DHS promotes self-deportation scheme with USD 2,600 incentive and free flights, featuring Taj Mahal imagery in social media campaign.
The Taj Mahal has featured in a social media post by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) promoting its self-deportation scheme alongside images from China and Colombia. The poster in DH’s post also has the names of India, China, and Colombia written on it. The move by the DHS comes amid the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigrants in the US.
$2,600 offer for self-deportation
The DHS in its post on X on Wednesday (March 18) has offered flight tickets and a payout of $2,600 for illegal immigrants who opt to self-deport by reporting themselves.
Also Read: Breaking US laws can lead to deportation, visa revocation: US Embassy
“You can go home with a fresh start! Receive a FREE flight home and a $2,600 exit bonus when you use CBP Home to self-deport,” stated DHS. It further started that by using the app, applicants can initiate the process by registering their intent to voluntarily leave the US. They can also submit their personal details, access information on travel assistance and financial incentives available under the scheme.
DHS details app and benefits
“The Department of Homeland Security has announced a historic opportunity for illegal aliens to receive cost-free travel, forgiveness of any failure to depart fines, and a $2,600 exit bonus to facilitate travel back to their home country or another country where they have lawful status through the CBP Home Mobile App,” stated the DHS in a release.
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As per estimates from 2022, nearly 725,000 undocumented Indian immigrants were living in the United States, placing them among the larger groups without legal status in the country, reported India Today.
Project Homecoming
The provision of free travel and financial incentives is part of Project Homecoming, an initiative rolled out by the Department of Homeland Security under the second Trump administration in 2025.
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According to DHS, the programme is designed to offer “a safe and dignified way for individuals who lack a legal basis to remain in the US to return to their country of origin or another country of legal eligibility,” with eligible individuals receiving government-funded flights and an exit bonus upon voluntarily leaving the US for good.
In November 2025, former DHS secretary Kristi Noem had said that "1.6 million self-deportations" of undocumented immigrants had taken place since President Donald Trump returned to office, citing figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.