The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reported that October 2025 saw the lowest number of border crossings in U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) history, marking the start of Fiscal Year 2026 with a record-low 30,561 total encounters nationwide. This figure is 29% lower than the previous record low set in October 2012 and represents a 79% decrease from October 2024.
Secretary Kristi Noem stated, "History made: the lowest border crossings in October history and the sixth straight month of ZERO releases. This is the most secure border ever. Thank you, President Trump and our brave DHS law enforcement. You make America proud!"
CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott added, “Our mission is simple: secure the border and safeguard this nation. And that’s exactly what we are doing. No excuses. No politics. Just results delivered by the most dedicated law-enforcement professionals in the country. We’re not easing up — we’re pushing even harder.”
According to preliminary data, October marked the sixth consecutive month where U.S. Border Patrol released no illegal aliens into the United States; every individual apprehended was processed according to law, which officials describe as an unmatched milestone.
From January 21 through October 2025, there were 106,134 total enforcement encounters along the Southwest Border—fewer than the monthly average during President Biden's administration, which was cited at 155,485 encounters per month.
The daily average for apprehensions on the Southwest Border stood at 258 per day in October—less than eleven per hour—which is a reduction of 95% compared to an average of over five thousand daily apprehensions between February 2021 and December 2024.
U.S. Border Patrol’s nationwide apprehensions have averaged under ten thousand per month since President Trump took office. In October alone there were just under ten thousand apprehensions—a figure more than sixty percent below previous lows recorded in fiscal year 2018.
Final numbers for these statistics will be released in coming weeks.
