Border Patrol Reports Lowest Apprehensions Since 1970
The Department of Homeland Security
WASHINGTON (News Release) - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced preliminary enforcement numbers for September 2025, closing out Fiscal Year 2025 with the lowest U.S. Border Patrol apprehensions since 1970.
“Fiscal Year 2025 shows what happens when we enforce the law without compromise,” said Rodney Scott, CBP Commissioner. “For too long, agents and officers were handcuffed by failed policies. Today they are empowered to do their jobs – and the result is the lowest apprehensions in more than five decades, and the most secure border in modern history.”
Southwest Border Apprehensions: 237,565 — the lowest fiscal year total in 55 years, compared to 201,780 in Fiscal Year 1970, and 87 percent below the average of the last four fiscal years which was 1.86 million.
Most encounters happened under the previous administration: 172,026 apprehensions — 72 percent of the total — occurred during the under the Biden Administration during the first 111 days of the fiscal year. Over the next 254 days, this administration recorded 65,539 apprehensions, accounting for just 27 percent of the year’s total.
Nationwide Encounters: 26,000 — down from 26,191 in August 2025 and 89 percent lower than the monthly average under the last administration.
Southwest Border Daily Average Apprehensions: 279 per day in September — fewer in an entire day now than in just two hours under the last administration, and 95 percent lower than the last administration’s daily average of 5,110 from February 2021 through December 2024.
Releases: September marked the fifth consecutive month with ZERO releases by the Border Patrol along the southwest border, compared to 9,144 releases in September 2024.
The full, finalized reports with end of fiscal year numbers will be released in the coming weeks.
