The Department of Homeland Security is spotlighting new data that it says underscores the scale of illegal immigration during the Biden administration, including a striking figure: 8 percent of Nicaragua’s entire population illegally entered the United States between February 2021 and January 2025.
According to a recently published report, DHS data compiled from U.S. Customs and Border Protection show that nationals from Nicaragua, Cuba, Haiti, and Honduras accounted for some of the highest percentages of total population crossing into the United States during that period.
DHS amplified the data in a post on X, tying the numbers directly to what it describes as the consequences of the Biden administration’s border policies.
Illegal immigration is siphoning American resources.
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) February 20, 2026
Due to unchecked migration during the Biden era, 8% of the ENTIRE population of Nicaragua illegally entered America.
After coming to the U.S., many of these Nicaraguans sent remittances back home. These remittances now make… pic.twitter.com/I3E3xtcZq6
“Illegal immigration is siphoning American resources.
Due to unchecked migration during the Biden era, 8% of the ENTIRE population of Nicaragua illegally entered America.
After coming to the U.S., many of these Nicaraguans sent remittances back home. These remittances now make up 37% of the ENTIRE NICARAGUAN ECONOMY, taking BILLIONS of dollars away from our nation.
This is unsustainable, and DHS is working to end it.”
The department’s emphasis on remittances adds an economic dimension to the migration data. DHS is not only highlighting the percentage of a country’s population that crossed illegally, but also arguing that the resulting financial flows have measurable macroeconomic effects abroad.
In a separate post, the department expanded beyond Nicaragua and placed the 8 percent figure alongside comparable percentages from other countries in the region.
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) February 18, 2026
“The Biden Administration turned America into a dumping ground for criminals from the third world.
During the Biden era:
– 8% of the ENTIRE population of Nicaragua illegally entered the US.
– This is in ADDITION TO 7% of Cuba, 6% of Haiti, and 5% of Honduras.
We must never forget what Democrats did to our country.”
The report likewise cited the department’s population-level breakdown and timeframe, noting that “the majority of crossings occurred between February 2021 to January 2025.”
It also reproduced DHS’s percentage comparison:
“During the Biden era – 8% of the ENTIRE population of Nicaragua illegally entered the US. This is in ADDITION TO 7% of Cuba, 6% of Haiti, and 5% of Honduras.”
That population-based framing is central to DHS’s argument. Rather than focusing solely on raw encounter totals, the department is comparing illegal entries to total national populations, a method designed to underscore proportional impact rather than just volume.
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The total number of illegal migrants from the countries listed is in the several millions, according to DHS. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and other Trump administration officials have repeatedly argued that border crossings surged under Biden and have framed current enforcement efforts as a corrective.
Here’s what we know. The figures come from CBP data, the timeframe spans four years, and DHS is using population-level comparisons to underscore the scale. The policy fight over what comes next is far from settled.
If the department’s percentages are accurate, the implications are significant. When nearly 1 in 12 citizens of a sovereign nation enter another country illegally within a 4-year window, that is not a marginal fluctuation. It is a structural event.
DHS appears intent on framing the debate in those terms.
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