New Deportation Policy for Illegal Migrants | 20 Apr 2026

Source: TH 

Why in News?

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has formulated a new comprehensive deportation policy to expedite the identification and deportation of illegal migrants, particularly from Bangladesh and Myanmar. 

What are the Key Highlights of the New Deportation Policy?

• District-Level Special Task Force: States must set up a special task force in each district to detect, identify, and deport undocumented migrants.  
  • They are required to submit a monthly status report on foreigners missing or overstaying their visas. 
• Timelines for Verification: An upper limit of 90 days has been fixed to verify the antecedents of suspected Bangladeshi or Myanmarese nationals, particularly if they claim residency in another State. 
• Operationalising Holding Centres/Camps: States are mandated to set up holding centres equipped with a 10-feet-high boundary ringed with barbed wires and strict access control to restrict the movement of undocumented migrants awaiting deportation. 
  • These centres must not be run from jails. Private buildings can be hired if government land is unavailable. 
  • Basic amenities like separate enclosures for men and women, open spaces, LPG connections, medical dispensaries, and ambulances must be ensured. 
  • Crucially, members of the same family should not be separated and must be housed together. 
• Application to Foreigners' Tribunals: The guidelines for holding centres also apply to those declared foreigners by Foreigners’ Tribunals (FTs), which are unique to Assam. 
• Document Cancellation & Blacklisting: Documents obtained illegally by migrants (such as Aadhaar, PAN cards, and driving licenses) must be uploaded to a designated portal for cancellation.  
  • Deported individuals will be "blacklisted" by the Bureau of Immigration to prevent future entry. 
• Foreigners Identification Portal (FIP): A dedicated portal has been launched to capture the biometric (fingerprints and facial photographs) and demographic details of intercepted illegal foreigners. 
• Border Interception Protocol: Migrants intercepted at land or maritime borders will be immediately sent back after biometric capture.  
  • Inadvertent crossers, if found innocent after interrogation, may be handed over to the border guarding forces of the respective countries rather than being detained. 

What is the Need for the New Deportation Policy? 

• Historical Context of Illegal Migration into India:Illegal migration into India has evolved over time, beginning with large-scale movements during Partition (1947) from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), followed by a major influx during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.  
  • Concerns over demographic changes led to the Assam Movement and the Assam Accord (1985), which fixed 24th March 1971 as the cut-off date for identifying illegal migrants.  
  • Since the 1990s, porous borders with Bangladesh and Myanmar, along with economic disparities, environmental stress, and political instability, have sustained migration, while open borders with Nepal complicate monitoring.  
  • In recent years, the issue has become linked with security, identity politics, and resource pressures, prompting stricter measures such as border fencing, National Register of Citizens (NRC) debates, and deportation drives.  

Need 

• Internal Security Imperatives: The push for stricter deportation comes in the backdrop of recent national security events, including the Pahalgam terror attack (April 2025) and subsequent military operations (Operation Sindoor, May 2025), which heightened the focus on domestic security protocols. 
• Geopolitical Instability in the Neighbourhood: The regime change in Bangladesh in August 2024 led to an MHA directive to actively track individuals who may have entered India illegally and were living on forged documents. 
• Resource Strain & Demographic Anxieties: Unregulated illegal migration strains local resources, alters the demographic profile of border states, and can trigger socio-economic conflicts (as historically seen during the Assam Agitation). 

What is the Legal Framework Dealing with Foreigners in India? 

• Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025:  Consolidates India’s immigration framework by replacing four older laws  (the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920; the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939; the Foreigners Act, 1946; and the Immigration (Carriers’ Liability) Act, 2000) and introduces stricter regulatory and enforcement measures.  
  • The Act mandates compulsory reporting of foreign nationals by hotels, educational institutions, and healthcare facilities, while also requiring airlines and shipping companies to share advance passenger and crew data. 
  • Additionally, it empowers the central government to regulate or shut down premises frequented by foreigners on security grounds and provides statutory backing to the Bureau of Immigration to identify, detain, and deport illegal migrants. 
• Border-specific agreements: Movement rules vary significantly depending on the neighboring country. India shares a free-border agreement with Nepal and maintains a Free Movement Regime (FMR) with Myanmar, which traditionally allowed people to move within 10 km on either side of the border. 
• Constitutional Delegation of Power: Under Article 258(1) of the Constitution, the Central Government has delegated the power to identify and deport illegally staying foreign nationals to State Governments and UT administrations. 
• Refugee status limitations: Following the 2021 military coup in Myanmar, thousands of Chin refugees crossed into Mizoram. However, the MHA clarified that state governments cannot grant "refugee" status, as India is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention of 1951 or its 1967 Protocol. 
• Foreigners (Tribunals) Order, 1964: Empowers District Magistrates in all States and UTs to set up tribunals to legally determine whether a person staying in India is a foreigner. 

What are the Associated Challenges with New Deportation Policy? 

• Identification Conundrum: Millions of Indians, especially those born before the mid-1980s or living in marginalized conditions, lack standard birth certificates. 
  • This ambiguity can lead to genuine citizens facing harassment or detention during identification drives. 
• Diplomatic Hurdles in Deportation: Deportation is a two-way street; it requires the "parent country" (e.g., Bangladesh or Myanmar) to officially accept the individuals as their citizens.  
  • If the origin country denies nationality, the individuals risk becoming stateless, languishing in holding centres indefinitely. 
• Human Rights Concerns: Despite the policy mandating basic amenities, holding centres have historically faced allegations of poor living conditions.  
  • Prolonged detention of individuals, including children and women, raises ethical and human rights concerns.  
  • Despite India’s strong global record and its election to the UN Human Rights Council (2026–28) for its seventh term, such measures risk undermining its international image and credibility. 
• Burden on State Machinery: District police and local administrations, already stretched with law-and-order duties, lack the capacity and training for nationality verification within a strict 90-day timeline.  
  • This risks delays, increases case pendency, opens avenues for corruption, and disproportionately affects women and other vulnerable groups.

What Measures can Further Strengthen Deportation Policy?

• Robust & Humane Verification: The government must ensure that the verification process is highly transparent and relies on multiple data points to prevent the harassment of legitimate Indian citizens. 
• Proactive Diplomatic Engagement: India needs to actively engage diplomatically with neighbouring countries to establish a streamlined Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the smooth and timely acceptance of deported nationals. 
• Adherence to International Standards: While national security is paramount, the treatment of illegal migrants in holding centres must strictly adhere to international human rights standards, ensuring psychological and medical care for vulnerable groups. 
• Strengthening Border Infrastructure: The ultimate solution lies in preventing illegal infiltration at the source. Implementing the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS) and smart fencing across porous terrains will drastically reduce unauthorized entry. 
• Strengthening Documentation & Verification: Documentation process should be made stricter, with robust verification mechanisms for identity documents like Aadhaar and voter ID, including enhanced police checks and strengthened Local Intelligence Units (LIU), supported by greater public awareness to curb misuse. 

Conclusion 

The MHA’s deportation policy strengthens border security and streamlines action against illegal migration. Its success will depend on fair implementation, transparency, and cooperation with neighbouring countries, while ensuring that human rights and genuine citizens are protected.