HONDURAS

Honduras provides migrants with a humanitarian stopover on their journey north

June 2026: The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has published a report on the Sagrada Familia Temporary Rest Centre in Danlí, eastern Honduras, one of the main staging posts for migrants travelling north through Central America. The report, released on 19 May 2026, documents the scale and nature of transit migration through the region, as well as the humanitarian response it has prompted.

 

The centre, situated a few kilometres from the Honduran border with Nicaragua, is operated by Caritas Honduras, with support from IOM and financing from the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (UNCERF). It offers shelter, food, medical care, psychological support, and protection services to migrants in transit.

 

Danlí sits on one of the main overland routes used by migrants heading north from South America and the Caribbean towards Guatemala, Mexico, and ultimately the United States. Between 2023 and 2024, hundreds of thousands of people crossed Honduras along this corridor. Most are Venezuelan nationals, although the centre welcomes migrants from various countries. Many have already spent weeks or months travelling overland through Colombia and Central America before reaching eastern Honduras.

 

The IOM report highlights that women travelling alone are a particularly vulnerable group within the transit population, facing increased risks of exploitation and violence throughout their journey. Unaccompanied children and family groups with young children are also among those the centre regularly assists.

 

The broader context involves ongoing and shifting migration pressures across the region. Stricter border enforcement by the United States, coupled with the collapse of legal migration routes for several nationalities, has led more migrants to undertake overland routes through Central America. Honduras, situated midway along this corridor, has become a key transit country rather than mainly an origin country, although Hondurans still emigrate in large numbers.

 

IOM Honduras has had a presence in the Danlí area for several years, collaborating with national migration authorities and civil society partners. The Sagrada Familia Centre is part of a wider regional response coordinated through IOM's operations across Central America.

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Source: International Organisation for Migration (IOM)

 

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CHILE

Chile’s new far-right government has started deportation flights and ordered the building of an anti-migrant wall

Six weeks into his presidency, Chile's far-right leader has initiated deportation flights, started constructing border walls, and reversed plans to grant legal status to nearly 200,000 people.

 

April 2026: When José Antonio Kast won Chile's presidential election last November, migrants in the country had good reason to be alarmed. His pledge to expel all 337,000 undocumented residents within weeks of taking office, build walls along the northern border, and criminalise irregular migration had sparked a wave of anxiety among immigrant communities. The Immigrant Times’ December article described the gap between his harsh rhetoric and the economic realities that make migrants essential to Chile's labour market.

 

Now Kast is in office, and he has wasted little time. On his first day as president on 11 March, Kast signed six decrees, three of which targeted immigration. Chile's military began digging a three-metre-deep trench along the Bolivian border and constructing adjacent walls up to five metres high to deter migrants. Kast signed the orders on his inauguration day and travelled to the frontier to oversee construction personally. Addressing reporters in the Port City of Arica, he declared that Chile would confront illegal immigration "with the full force of the state."

 

The new administration also acted swiftly on the issue of legal status. The outgoing government of Gabriel Boric had prepared a decree to grant legal residence to 182,000 people who had applied for regular status. Kast's Migration Service director announced that the new government would not carry out that decree. The government argued that at least 6,000 of those enrolled in the process had criminal records, although it provided no breakdown of the remainder.

 

A poll carried out in Kast's first week in office showed him with a 57 per cent approval rating, the highest for any Chilean president since 2010, with 80 per cent of respondents supporting the border plan. That public support has given him confidence to proceed swiftly with the enforcement agenda his campaign pledged.

 

On 16 April, Chile conducted its first government-organised deportation flight, expelling 40 foreign nationals from the northern city of Iquique. The Boeing 737 of the Air Force made stopovers in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Guayaquil, and Bogotá, delivering 17 Bolivians, four Ecuadorians, and 19 Colombians to local migration authorities. Of the 40, 15 had criminal records; the remaining 25 were cases related to administrative issues, including individuals who had entered Chile through unauthorised crossings, which constitutes grounds for deportation under Chilean law.

 

Officials described the flight as the first in a series of charter operations and stated that 151 deportations had been completed in Kast's first month in office, including land-based removals. According to official figures, more than 44,000 people are ready to be repatriated to their countries, with approximately 75,000 deportation orders pending.

 

However, the scale of the challenge quickly hits practical limits. The situation with Venezuelan migrants, who make up 65 per cent of deportation orders, presents a specific obstacle, as diplomatic relations between Santiago and Caracas remain frozen following Venezuela's disputed 2024 elections, making direct deportations impossible. Kast's government is examining whether a third country could act as an intermediary, but no solution has been confirmed.

 

In the north of the country, the large-scale departure of undocumented migrants that Kast's election was expected to trigger has not occurred. Instead, migrants and asylum seekers have been taking alternative routes into Chile, often via Bolivia, with some crossing the highlands on foot at night to avoid detection, where temperatures can drop to -15 degrees Celsius.

 

Critics contend that Kast's strategy is pushing vulnerable individuals further underground instead of decreasing their numbers. Economists and labour analysts have long warned that mass deportations would lead to severe shortages in agriculture, construction, and care work, the sectors most reliant on migrant labour.

 

Further reading from The Immigrant Times: Migrants in Chile fear Kast presidency || South American migration ||

 

Sources: Newsweek; MercoPress; ColombiaOne; Buenos Aires Times; Al Jazeera; The Rio Times

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ECUADOR

Venezuelan migrants contribute $900 million annually to Ecuador’s economy

October 2025: Ecuadorian Households with Venezuelan members contribute an estimated US$900 million annually to the country’s economy through the consumption of goods and services, according to a new study by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The findings highlight the significant role of migrants in supporting economic growth and development across Latin America and the Caribbean.

 

“The evidence is clear: when migrants have access to rights and opportunities, they contribute substantially to the societies that host them,” said Kristina Mejo, IOM Ecuador Chief of Mission. “Ensuring regular status and fair access to the labour market is a catalyst for growth and an investment that generates benefits for all: migrant families, host communities, and the economy as a whole.

 

Ecuador currently hosts approximately 441,000 of the 6.9 million Venezuelans living in Latin America and the Caribbean. This indicates considerable opportunities to further harness migration’s potential for economic growth in both the country and the region.

 

The study also estimates that Venezuelan households pay nearly $47 million in taxes annually. These contributions were facilitated by public policies implemented by the Government of Ecuador, which improved documentation processes for Venezuelans and expanded access to formal employment, social security, financial services, and the recognition of academic degrees.

 

Venezuelans in Ecuador constitute a young and productive population: more than 70 per cent are of working age (18–39 years old) and have educational levels comparable to Ecuadorians. However, the study reveals that about 66 per cent of Venezuelans are employed informally despite holding professional degrees, and only 30 per cent work in their field of expertise. This restricts their full potential and limits integration into the productive sector. The barriers are even greater for women: nearly 69 per cent are in informal jobs and earn less than the minimum monthly wage. 

Source: International Organization for Migration (IOM)

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Further reading: Immigrantion in South America ||

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