HONDURAS · MIGRATION
Key Facts
- —What is happening Honduras’s migration institute counted 39,243 returned migrants from 1 January to Thursday, 22 October, 91% of the 2025 total with more than two months left.
- —Why it matters The United States supplied about 90% of returns to 30 September, so the count tracks US enforcement. The 2026 total is already 91% of all of 2025.
- —The numbers Of the 39,243, 30,688 arrived by air and 8,555 by land. October added about 118 a day, against a 2026 average of 133 a day.
- —Who is who Migración Honduras, the national migration institute (INM), publishes the count. The US Department of Homeland Security said in July 2025 that Honduras’s Temporary Protected Status would end on 8 September 2025, covering about 72,000 people.
- —What to watch At 133 a day, 2026 passes the 2025 total of 42,928 around 19 November; at October’s 118 a day, around 22 November.
- —What it means for you Travel to Honduras is unaffected. For US readers the figures show where deportation policy lands, though INM has not split the latest count by origin.
Honduras has taken back almost as many migrants in 2026 as in all of 2025. Most come back from the United States.
The number of Honduras returned migrants reached 39,243 between 1 January and Thursday, 22 October 2026, according to the national migration institute. The United States is the main country they come back from, so the count is a gauge of US deportation policy.
That is 91% of all returns in 2025, with more than two months of 2026 still to run. The Rio Times Honduras hub follows the country’s migration and security stories.
What the Migration Institute Reported
Migración Honduras, the National Migration Institute (INM), counted 39,243 Hondurans who returned from 1 January to 22 October. HCH, a Honduran broadcaster, published the figures on Saturday, 24 October.
Of the total, 30,688 people arrived by air and 8,555 by land. That equals 91.4% of the 42,928 returns recorded in all of 2025, a gap of 3,685 people.
How the October Pace Compares
El Heraldo reported 36,658 returns to 30 September, about 134 a day, and put the 2025 total at 42,928. The Rio Times covered that count on 5 October and a later one, near 38,000, on 19 October.
October added 2,585 returns in 22 days, about 118 a day, against a 2026 average of 133. The 2025 average was about 118 a day, so October runs near last year’s pace.
These daily rates are Rio Times arithmetic from cumulative figures, because INM does not publish a daily series. Cut-off dates and later revisions could shift them.
Where Returnees Come From
El Heraldo reported INM records to 30 September: 32,851 returns from the United States, 3,716 from Mexico and 91 from Guatemala. That makes the United States about 90% of the 36,658 in that earlier count.
HCH names the United States, Mexico and Guatemala as main origins on 22 October but gives no split. TuNota reported INM data to 23 December 2025: 34,042 of 42,087 returns, about 81%, came from the United States.
US policy is part of the background. A notice in the Federal Register of Tuesday, 8 July 2025, terminated Temporary Protected Status for Honduras, effective 8 September 2025.
The notice covered about 72,000 Honduran holders, the US Department of Homeland Security estimated. On 9 February 2026 an appeals court stayed a ruling against the terminations, UCLA Law reported; later status is unconfirmed.
What It Means for US Readers
The count shows where US removals end up: most returns to Honduras came from the United States in INM’s split to September. HCH notes that returning also raises reintegration and job challenges at home.
Nothing in the data changes entry rules for US visitors or investors in Honduras. The counts say nothing about jobs or reintegration, which INM does not measure here.
What Is Not Known
INM has not published the US share for the 22 October count or the split between deportees and voluntary returns. HCH’s headline says deportees while its text says returnees.
The Rio Times could open one outlet carrying the 39,243 count, and INM’s own release was not reachable. No source explains the October pace or how many returnees were former TPS holders, and revisions are possible.
What Comes Next
INM publishes updated cumulative counts, and the next one will show whether the October pace holds. At about 133 a day the 2025 total falls around 19 November.
At about 118 a day the total passes it around 22 November. These dates are arithmetic, not a forecast, and do not signal any policy change.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a returned migrant in Honduras?
INM counts Hondurans who come back to the country, including people deported and, in smaller numbers, regular and voluntary returns. The 2026 releases do not split the groups.
How many Hondurans returned in 2026?
INM counted 39,243 from 1 January to 22 October 2026. That is 91.4% of the 42,928 recorded in all of 2025.
Where do most returnees come from?
The United States, according to INM records to 30 September, which show 32,851 of 36,658 returns. Mexico and Guatemala follow.
Why does this matter to the United States?
Most returns follow US removals, so the count measures how enforcement affects Honduras. INM records to 30 September show 32,851 of 36,658 returns came from the United States.
Does this change travel to Honduras?
No change for visitors has been announced. The figures concern returning Honduran nationals, not entry rules.
Sources: HCH, returns 2026, 24 Oct; El Heraldo, returns to 30 Sep, 4 Oct; TuNota, 2025 returns by origin; Federal Register, Honduras TPS termination, 8 Jul 2025; UCLA Law, Ninth Circuit stay, 9 Feb 2026; Rio Times, 19 Oct; Rio Times, 5 Oct (all accessed 26 October 2026).
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief