Returnees

More than 50,000 Hondurans have been deported and returned home, but the government has yet to distribute the 2,500 lempiras (about $100) per person it pledged to returnees, according to the Mennonite Social Action Commission.

Official migration data shows 36,658 Hondurans returned between January and September 2026, averaging 134 people per day, with most coming from the United States amid increasingly restrictive U.S. immigration policies.

More than 51,000 Hondurans have been returned from the United States so far this year—already surpassing 2025's total—prompting officials and organizations to consider declaring a migration emergency and coordinating a national response.

With over 70,000 Hondurans losing protected status in the US, economists warn that potential returnees will strain Honduras's already-weak job market, which lacks sufficient formal employment and faces a skills gap between workers and employer needs.

With TPS cancellation expected to send 55,000 Hondurans home, civil-society organizations are calling on the government to declare a migration emergency to ensure safe, dignified return and direct resources to municipalities and returnees.

Congress secretary Carlos Ledezma introduced a bill to strengthen the law protecting Honduran migrants returning from any country, extending tax-exempt benefits to returnees and their relatives up to the fourth degree of kinship.

Honduras's new law exempts returned migrants—whether deported, voluntary returnees, or those with expired visas—from import taxes on household goods (up to $150,000), work tools and machinery (up to $100,000), and two vehicles per family, with processing handled through a unified online portal.

Congress approved a law allowing Honduran migrants who return home to import household goods up to $200,000 and work equipment up to $150,000 duty-free; Finance Ministry officials have 60 days to establish the application process.

According to Honduras's National Migration Institute, 19,364 Hondurans were returned to the country from January through May 2026, with 17,531 coming from the United States, 1,750 from Mexico, and 83 from Guatemala.