June migration data from the U.S.-Mexico border, posted yesterday by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), show a 42 percent drop, from May, in the number of migrants who crossed the border in the areas between the ports of entry (official border crossings), ending up in Border Patrol custody. There is a lot of red (reductions) in this chart of tables:

**All Border Patrol Migrant Encounters at the U.S.-Mexico Border** Includes only those encountered between ports of entry. Shaded countries’ citizens may be expelled to Mexico under Title 42, or deported there under the 2023 asylum rule. **April 2023** Mexico 59,666 Venezuela 29,731 Colombia 17,513 Guatemala 14,309 Other 13,777 Honduras 12,113 Peru 8,378 India 8,012 Ecuador 6,197 El Salvador 4,391 China 3,182 Brazil 2,898 Turkey 2,292 Nicaragua 372 Cuba 323 Russia 321 Haiti 235 Romania 197 **May 2023** Mexico 43,614 Venezuela 28,055 Honduras 17,813 Colombia 17,625 Other 16,273 Guatemala 14,150 Peru 8,156 Ecuador 6,267 India 4,701 El Salvador 4,575 Brazil 3,467 China 2,769 Turkey 1,840 Cuba 941 Nicaragua 463 Haiti 387 Russia 162 Romania 122 **June 2023** Mexico 33,967 Venezuela 12,549 Other 11,485 Honduras 10,657 Guatemala 9,547 Ecuador 4,704 Colombia 3,915 India 2,513 Peru 2,478 Brazil 2,225 China 2,122 El Salvador 2,042 Turkey 493 Cuba 351 Russia 186 Nicaragua 180 Romania 93 Haiti 29

At the same time, it shows a 27 percent increase in the number of migrants who were able to approach the land-border ports of entry. The 45,026 people processed at ports of entry in June 2023 was a record. There is a lot of green (increases) in this chart of tables:

**All Port of Entry Migrant Encounters at the U.S.-Mexico Border** Includes only those encountered at ports of entry. Shaded countries’ citizens may be expelled to Mexico under Title 42, or deported there under the 2023 asylum rule. **April 2023** Mexico 7,421 Haiti 7,041 Venezuela 4,905 Russia 2,319 Other 2,083 Cuba 1,286 Honduras 1,109 Brazil 571 Colombia 330 El Salvador 288 Guatemala 273 Ecuador 199 Nicaragua 134 Peru 68 China 23 Ukraine 13 Romania 9 Canada 6 **May 2023** Mexico 11,793 Haiti 4,788 Venezuela 4,679 Honduras 3,226 Other 3,204 Russia 2,811 Cuba 1,864 El Salvador 775 Guatemala 667 Colombia 506 Brazil 349 Nicaragua 255 Ecuador 205 Peru 109 China 24 Ukraine 21 Turkey 19 Romania 10 **June 2023** Mexico 15,309 Venezuela 7,906 Haiti 7,332 Honduras 4,434 Cuba 2,330 Other 2,144 Russia 1,242 El Salvador 1,143 Guatemala 814 Colombia 790 Brazil 736 Ecuador 399 Nicaragua 238 Peru 145 China 25 Ukraine 15 India 9 Turkey 8

The number of nationalities whose citizens go to the ports of entry more than 20 percent of the time increased from 4 in April to 9 in June.

**Percentage of Migrants Encountered at Ports of Entry at U.S.-Mexico Border** Shaded countries’ citizens may be expelled to Mexico under Title 42, or deported there under the 2023 asylum rule. **April 2023** Haiti 97% Russia 88% Cuba 80% Nicaragua 26% Brazil 16% Venezuela 14% Other 13% Mexico 11% Honduras 8% El Salvador 6% Romania 4% Ecuador 3% Guatemala 2% Colombia 2% Peru 1% China 1% India 0% Turkey 0% **May 2023** Russia 95% Haiti 93% Cuba 66% Nicaragua 36% Mexico 21% Other 16% Honduras 15% El Salvador 14% Venezuela 14% Brazil 9% Romania 8% Guatemala 5% Ecuador 3% Colombia 3% Peru 1% Turkey 1% China 1% India 0% **June 2023** Haiti 100% Russia 87% Cuba 87% Nicaragua 57% Venezuela 39% El Salvador 36% Mexico 31% Honduras 29% Brazil 25% Colombia 17% Other 16% Guatemala 8% Ecuador 8% Peru 6% Romania 2% Turkey 2% China 1% India 0%

This is positive. The “CBP One” app that migrants must now use to secure asylum appointments at ports of entry continues to have flaws, but with 1,450 appointments per day now available, wait times in Mexican border cities—while still too long—have decreased.

It is much more humane to process asylum seekers and other migrants at the ports of entry, instead of requiring them to cross rivers or climb walls to stand on U.S. soil and turn themselves in to Border Patrol. I encourage CBP to continue increasing appointments until protection-seeking migrants no longer have an incentive to take the great risk of crossing the border on riverbanks and deserts.

As that happens, Border Patrol can mostly be cut out of the asylum processing picture, a very welcome outcome.

And even if the Biden administration’s new rule banning asylum for many migrants who cross “improperly” survives court challenges, greater access to the ports of entry will make such crossings less attractive to protection-seeking migrants anyway.

The shifts in June are a step toward that.

Finally, here is a combination of the first two tables, combining migrants who arrived at, and between, the ports of entry in April, May, and June. Overall, migration declined 30 percent from May to June.

**All CBP Migrant Encounters at the U.S.-Mexico Border** Includes those encountered at, and between, ports of entry. Shaded countries’ citizens may be expelled to Mexico under Title 42, or deported there under the 2023 asylum rule **April 2023** Mexico 67,087 Venezuela 34,636 Colombia 17,843 Other 15,860 Guatemala 14,582 Honduras 13,222 Peru 8,446 India 8,013 Haiti 7,276 Ecuador 6,396 El Salvador 4,679 Brazil 3,469 China 3,205 Russia 2,640 Turkey 2,292 Cuba 1,609 Nicaragua 506 Romania 206 **May 2023** Mexico 55,407 Venezuela 32,734 Honduras 21,039 Other 19,477 Colombia 18,131 Guatemala 14,817 Peru 8,265 Ecuador 6,472 El Salvador 5,350 Haiti 5,175 India 4,705 Brazil 3,816 Russia 2,973 Cuba 2,805 China 2,793 Turkey 1,859 Nicaragua 718 Romania 132 **June 2023** Mexico 49,276 Venezuela 20,455 Honduras 15,091 Other 13,629 Guatemala 10,361 Haiti 7,361 Ecuador 5,103 Colombia 4,705 El Salvador 3,185 Brazil 2,961 Cuba 2,681 Peru 2,623 India 2,522 China 2,147 Russia 1,428 Turkey 501 Nicaragua 418 Romania 95