Honduran Migrants Increase Remittances Amid Fears of Deportation

Sun Dec 28 2025 21:14:47 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

As tensions rise over U.S. immigration policies, Hondurans living in the U.S. are sending more money back home than ever before, driven by fears of potential deportation and economic necessity.

Honduran immigrants in the United States are accelerating remittances to their families back home as concerns over deportation loom. Despite fears, remittances increased 26% this year compared to the last, linking the phenomenon to the current political climate influenced by immigration policies. Many feel compelled to send money to secure their families’ futures amid rising costs associated with undocumented immigration.

For over a year, Elías Padilla had been saving up to make the journey from Honduras to the United States as an undocumented immigrant. As an Uber driver in the snarled streets of the capital, Tegucigalpa, it hasn't been easy for him to put money aside. On bad days he makes as little as $12 (£9) in 12 hours.

Now, though, his plans are on hold. The images of undocumented immigrants in major US cities being dragged away by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, their wrists in zip-ties, have deterred at least one would-be immigrant in Central America from travelling north.

I want to improve my life conditions because we earn very little here, Elías explains as we drive around the city. Take this line of work, for example: an Uber driver in the US makes in an hour what I'd make in a day.

Like most Honduran immigrants, Elías says the main aim of reaching the US would be to send remittances home. But I see what Trump is doing, and it's made me think twice, he admits.

Elías's change of heart will doubtless be welcome news to the architects of US President Donald Trump's immigration policies. Since Trump took office, remittances from undocumented immigrants to Honduras have surged, with a 26% increase reported between January and October this year compared to the last, unlocking more than $10.1 billion (£7.5 billion) in just the first nine months.

Marcos, a Honduran living in the US doing construction work, shares that he has increased the amount he sends home for his family to cover essentials. The fear of deportation makes it urgent for these migrants to send money home before it's too late. It's like a race against time to send home as much as possible before becoming another statistic in ICE's crackdown, he explains.

Potential migrants in Honduras continue to find the costs of human smuggling increased due to the political climate and demand for safe passage, with prices doubling amid tightened enforcement measures.

With the bleak economic outlook in Honduras and continued fear of crackdown, Elías believes many will still desire the American Dream, even with potential risks. Trump has only postponed my plans, he asserts. Not cancelled them.