The US has seen an unprecedented immigration crackdown ever since Donald Trump began his second term as the President in January 2025. Hundreds of thousands of people have already been deported by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this year.
The future seems even darker for immigrants as the Trump administration is planning to enforce its anti-immigration polices more aggressively in 2026.
According to Reuters, the government has already set a target to deport 1 million people annually. So far, around 622,000 people have been expelled from the country.
But despite families being torn apart and even legal citizens being on the ICE hit list, the Trump administration is in no mood to slow down the deportation process.
U.S. President Donald Trump is preparing for a more aggressive immigration crackdown in 2026 with billions in new funding, including by raiding more workplaces — even as backlash builds ahead of next year’s midterm elections. pic.twitter.com/BxZzzTqDW9
— Emma Carter (@SheyTan_34) December 21, 2025
If the $19 billion annual budget for the ICE and Border Patrol was not enough, the government has allocated an additional $170 billion for the cause through the One Big Beautiful Bill.
The amount will be utilized through 2029, the year when Trump’s second term will come to an end. So what does the administration plan to do with this extravagant budget?
First of all, expect more federal agents in cities. This year, ICE agents raided neighbourhoods in major cities to bust residents they deemed illegal.
More cities will see the arrival of these agents in 2026, leading to more arrests and deportations. The administration also plans to establish new detention centers to handle the sheer number of people it will detain.
At the same time, the officials would sign contracts with third-party companies to help locate and deport illegal occupants. As for how these people will be sent back, the Department of Homeland Security has already purchased a Boeing 737.
Additionally, there was some respite for factories and businesses this year, as ICE agents spared a few of these places, considering their impact on the economy. But, not anymore. The government is now ready for full-swing raids on workplaces where illegal immigrants are often hired.
But immigrants without a legal status are not the only ones affected by the extreme crackdown. Multiple cases have been reported where the spouses of permanent residents or citizens have been asked to leave the country. Even people who served in the army are not being spared.
People who dream of getting an entry into the US legally are also having a hard time, as the Trump administration has already changed student and employment visa policies and made rules extremely stringent.
BREAKING: 30 immigrants have died in ICE custody since Donald Trump took office, making 2025 the deadliest year in ICE detention since the early 2000s.
— Senate Judiciary Democrats 🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryDems) December 19, 2025
The officials are also prepared for an intense crackdown on legal citizens in 2026, as the Republican government has guided the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to ensure 100-200 denaturalization cases per month. In comparison, the number of these cases averaged 11 between 1990 and 2017.
Despite criticism, the Trump administration has refused to back down on its anti-immigration policy. The Democrats have time and again called out the government, especially for appointing federal agents in major cities.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker talked about how ICE agents were harassing people in his state, particularly in Chicago.
He said in an interview with NBC Chicago, “They call it enforcement. We call it harassment, but we don’t know how long they’ll stay. It appears that they’re here for at least a couple of days, if not longer.”
Trump also seems to be losing public support over his policies. While 50% people supported his anti-immigration agenda in March this year, the number has now fallen to 41%.
With the mid-term elections approaching next year, people hoped that the President would ease up on the policy. However, the government has made it clear that the crackdown will get more intense in the upcoming year.
