The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has deported at least 2,310 Nigerian nationals between 2014 and 2024, with an additional 20 removals already recorded in 2025. This brings the total to 2,330 Nigerians deported in the past 11 years, according to ICE’s official statistical reports and appendices.
Deportation Trends
Data reviewed from ICE’s annual reports show a fluctuating trend in Nigerian removals:
2014–2016: 261, 224, and 242 removals respectively
2017–2018: Spike to 312 and 369 under the Trump administration
2019–2020: Declined to 286 and 199
2021–2022: Sharp drop to 78 and 49 during COVID restrictions and Biden’s softer enforcement guidelines
2023–2024: Rebounded to 152 and then slightly dropped to 138
Overall, deportations fell by 47.1%, from 261 Nigerians in 2014 to 138 in 2024.
Nigeria Tops African Deportation List
ICE data ranks Nigeria as the African country with the highest number of removals, ahead of Somalia (1,539), Ghana (1,380), Senegal (1,122), and Kenya (858). Across the globe, Mexico recorded the largest number of deportees (over 907,000), followed by Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.
Policies Driving the Numbers
The spike in removals during Donald Trump’s first term was linked to Executive Order 13768 (2017), which expanded ICE’s enforcement to target anyone without lawful status. In 2019 alone, ICE carried out over 267,000 removals, including 286 Nigerians—the highest yearly figure in nearly a decade.
Meanwhile, the Electronic Nationality Verification (ENV) programme—which streamlined identity verification—shortened deportation timelines and allowed weekend charter flights to Africa.
Under President Joe Biden, ICE shifted priorities to focus on criminals and recent entrants, cutting Nigerian removals to historic lows in 2021 and 2022. However, a Supreme Court ruling in 2024 allowed DHS to reinstate wider guidelines, leading to fresh deportation crackdowns.
Concerns from Nigeria
In February 2025, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, raised concerns in a meeting with US Ambassador Richard Mills Jr., urging Washington to ensure deportations are conducted humanely and with dignity.
“We are asking as a country whether deportees will be given ample time to handle their assets or simply bundled onto planes and repatriated,” she said, stressing the emotional and financial toll on families.
The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has also confirmed that an inter-agency committee—including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, and the Office of the National Security Adviser—has been activated to coordinate reception and reintegration of returnees in the event of mass deportations.
Current Outlook
As of January 2025, ICE reports that 3,690 Nigerians remain on its non-detained docket—individuals identified and under watch for possible removal. Officials warn that deportations may rise again under renewed enforcement drives.
