U.S. Border Encounters

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recorded 12.0 million encounters between FY2020 and FY2026. Encounters peaked at 3.1 million in FY2023 — the highest in recorded history — before declining sharply under tighter enforcement policies.

12.0M

Total Encounters

3.1M

Peak (FY2023)

116K

FY2026 FYTD

MEXICO

#1 Citizenship

💡

Key Insights

• Encounters peaked at 3.1M in FY2023 — a 5x increase from FY2020's pandemic low

• Mexico accounts for 29% of all encounters — but Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua surged dramatically

• FY2026 is on pace for the lowest in years — 116,465 through January

• Southwest border accounts for ~85% of all encounters — the northern border and coastal routes make up the rest

Border Encounters by Fiscal Year

Encounters by Citizenship (FY2020-2026)

USBP vs. OFO Encounters

Encounters by Demographic

Southwest Border Encounters

Top Nationalities Encountered (FY2020-2026)

#	Country	Total Encounters	% of Total
1	MEXICO	3,437,963	28.5%
2	GUATEMALA	1,042,018	8.6%
3	HONDURAS	980,210	8.1%
4	VENEZUELA	961,592	8.0%
5	CUBA	729,524	6.1%
6	HAITI	507,796	4.2%
7	COLOMBIA	473,197	3.9%
8	NICARAGUA	452,422	3.8%
9	ECUADOR	390,502	3.2%
10	EL SALVADOR	350,696	2.9%
11	INDIA	348,162	2.9%
12	UKRAINE	309,211	2.6%
13	PHILIPPINES	285,441	2.4%
14	CANADA	224,431	1.9%
15	BRAZIL	196,620	1.6%
16	PERU	183,735	1.5%
17	RUSSIA	145,526	1.2%
18	TURKEY	65,220	0.5%
19	MYANMAR (BURMA)	25,792	0.2%
20	ROMANIA	21,407	0.2%

Encounters by Fiscal Year

Fiscal Year	Total Encounters	Change
FY2020	628,427	—
FY2021	1,933,048	+207.6%
FY2022	2,738,826	+41.7%
FY2023	3,148,444	+15.0%
FY2024	2,822,441	-10.4%
FY2025	662,270	-76.5%
FY2026 (FYTD)	116,465	-82.4%

What Are "Encounters"?

CBP uses "encounters" as a catch-all term for contacts between border agents and migrants. This includes:

Title 8 Apprehensions — Border Patrol arrests between ports of entry
Title 8 Inadmissibles — People deemed inadmissible at official ports of entry
Title 42 Expulsions — Rapid expulsions under COVID-era public health authority (ended May 2023)

Important: one person can generate multiple encounters. Someone expelled under Title 42 and trying again the next week counts as two encounters. This is why encounter numbers can exceed unique individuals.

The FY2023 Peak

FY2023 saw 3.1 million encounters — the highest ever recorded. Multiple factors converged: the end of Title 42 (May 2023), economic instability in Venezuela and Central America, cartel-facilitated migration routes, and a perception that enforcement would tighten. The southwest border alone accounted for 2.5M encounters.

Border Patrol vs. Ports of Entry

Encounters happen through two main channels: U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) between official ports of entry, and Office of Field Operations (OFO) at the ports themselves. USBP encounters are what most people think of as "illegal border crossings," while OFO encounters include people presenting themselves at official crossings — some with valid claims, some without.

From Encounter to Court

Not every border encounter leads to immigration court. Some are immediately expelled (Title 42, now ended). Others receive expedited removal. Those who express a fear of persecution get a credible fear interview and, if passed, enter the immigration court system — joining the 1.9 million pending cases tracked on this site.

📖 Related Analysis

💊 The Fentanyl Pipeline

How fentanyl flows across the border — and what seizure data reveals.

🏛️ Border to Courtroom

What happens after a border encounter — the path through immigration court.

Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection Public Data Portal. Data through January 2026. Fiscal years run October 1 to September 30.