Mexico Rushes to Help Stranded Migrants After Trump Shuts Down the CBP One App

The Mexican government has announced the Mexico Embraces You program, which includes economic and social services for Mexicans deported from the United States. This measure is in response to the strict immigration policy that President Donald Trump announced on January 20, and which has already begun to materialize with the closure of the CBP One app.

CBP One was launched in 2020, allowing foreign vendors to schedule cargo inspections. In 2023 the Biden administration expanded its functions to include unauthorized migrants seeking asylum. This Monday, on Inauguration Day, an order from Donald Trump put an end to the program, and thousands of scheduled appointments were canceled.

Rosa Icela Rodríguez, head of the Ministry of the Interior (SEGOB), unveiled the project during the morning conference of Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum. Rodríguez explained that the strategy includes economic support of 2,000 pesos for Mexican citizens who lack the resources to return to their communities of origin. This support will be delivered through the new Bienestar Paisano Card.

Federal authorities add that the plan is designed to allow Mexican migrants to join existing social programs, which include pensions for senior citizens and people with disabilities, scholarships for elementary and high school students, and the initiatives Sembrando Vida, Mujeres con Bienestar, Jóvenes Construyendo el Futuro, and Salud Casa por Casa.

Repatriated Mexicans will be affiliated with the Mexican Social Security Institute. The program will grant them access to insurance for sickness and maternity, work risks, disability and life, retirement, and for severance in advanced age and old age. They will also be able to enjoy all social benefits and childcare services provided by the Social Security Law. The benefits will extend to the spouses or partners, children, and parents of the deportee.

Rodriguez adds that Mexicans expelled from the United States will also receive legal advice to help them obtain documents of identification, such as birth certificates, voter’s credentials, and the Clave Única de Registro de Población (Unique Population Registry Code). They will also have access to social housing support provided by the Ministry of Agrarian, Territorial, and Urban Development and by the National Workers’ Housing Fund Institute (Instituto del Fondo Nacional de la Vivienda para los Trabajadores).

The SEGOB has trained public servants from the governments of Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Chiapas, Guerrero, Oaxaca, Puebla, Michoacán, Guanajuato, State of Mexico, Sinaloa, and Jalisco for the proper implementation of the Mexico Embraces You plan. It claims to have coordinated efforts with the Human Rights Commission and the Business Coordinating Council.

Trump’s Possible Mass Deportations

Donald Trump confirmed in his inaugural address that he will declare a state of emergency on the Mexican border to stop what he called “an invasion by illegal intruders.” He has promised to act “with historic speed and force.” His statements have begun to take effect.

US Customs and Border Protection has confirmed that features of the CBP One mobile app that allowed undocumented immigrants to submit information in advance and schedule appointments at eight southwest border ports of entry are no longer available. The agency added that appointments scheduled through the app have been canceled.

The app was launched in 2021 to streamline immigration flow and processes in the border region. The tool was designed to serve undocumented migrants from central and northern Mexico and “avoid border pressure from those arriving seeking asylum,” according to Mexican authorities.

Sheinbaum anticipated its closure in a statement from the SEGOB, published before Trump’s inauguration. She said that “this application has helped migrants not have to go to the northern border to wait for asylum. We are going to propose that this application or other related ones be allowed.”

Juan Ramón de la Fuente, secretary of foreign affairs, announced the creation of the ConsulApp platform. The system will have three essential functions: alerting the nearest Mexican consulate to initiate legal assistance in real time, notifying family members or trusted contacts selected by the migrant about his or her legal situation, and directly warning the Foreign Ministry, which will supervise compliance with due process.

The Mexican president emphasized that migrants are essential to the economy, and reaffirmed her support to Mexican nationals through the 53 consulates throughout the United States.

This story originally appeared on WIRED en Español and has been translated from Spanish.