U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released an AI-generated ad, featuring Santa Claus himself rounding up illegal immigrants.
The video, part of the Department of Homeland Security’s deportation ad campaign, depicts a buff Santa Claus suiting up in red and donning a plate carrier labeled “ICE” as he arrests illegal immigrants, processes them, and loads them onto a plane marked “ICE Air” for deportation to their home countries.
"AVOID ICE AIR AND SANTA’S NAUGHTY LIST!" the X post reads. "Self-deport today with the CBP Home app, earn $3,000 and spend Christmas at home with loved ones. Holiday incentive is valid through the end of 2025."
AVOID ICE AIR AND SANTA’S NAUGHTY LIST!
— U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) December 22, 2025
Self-deport today with the CBP Home app, earn $3,000 and spend Christmas at home with loved ones.
Holiday incentive is valid through the end of 2025. pic.twitter.com/v80QAaKquD
The ad follows an announcement by Secretary Kristi Noem tripling the incentive for illegal immigrants to self-deport, from $1,000 to $3,000. Self-deportation also includes additional benefits, such as the possibility of legally re-entering the United States in the future. Officials note that encouraging voluntary departures is significantly less expensive than forced deportations, which cost taxpayers approximately $17,000 per individual.
"This Christmas season, the U.S. taxpayer is generously TRIPLING the incentive for illegal aliens to leave voluntarily. Through the end of the year, illegal aliens who self-deport using the CBP Home App can receive a $3,000 exit bonus," Noem wrote on X, Monday. "Illegal aliens should take advantage of this gift and self-deport because if they don’t, we will find them, we will arrest them, and they will not return."
So far, self-deportations through the CBP Home app have been more effective than raids by immigration officers. More than 1.9 million illegal immigrants have already self-deported, whereas only around 600,000 have been forcefully deported by ICE.