No Borders NewsOn September 16, 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that they have reached 16 consecutive months of “zero releases at the border.” In their statement, DHS and CBP link the trend to the Trump administration’s enforcement approach.
The agencies say border apprehensions have fallen to levels they describe as the lowest in decades. They report that Border Patrol apprehensions along the southwest border in August were 94% lower than the Biden administration’s monthly average, and they also cite nationwide decreases compared with the previous month.
CBP and DHS also describe their drug interdiction work. They report higher drug seizures this fiscal year compared with FY 2024 and with the average of the prior four years, including increases in cocaine seizures and continued high fentanyl seizures.
The press release frames the policy goal as ensuring that people who cross illegally are apprehended, detained, and removed rather than released into the United States. It also points readers to CBP’s “Stats and Summaries” page for full monthly reporting.
Because this is a press release focused on enforcement metrics, it does not provide details here about how immigration law and individual screening for protection claims are handled in specific cases. For the most accurate picture, readers may want to review the official CBP/DHS reporting linked in the release.