Colombia’s newly elected right-wing President Abelardo de la Espriella has announced a sweeping crackdown on irregular immigration, directing authorities to identify and deport foreign nationals who are living in the country without legal status. The move marks a significant shift in Colombia’s approach to migration and is expected to have its biggest impact on Venezuelans, who make up the overwhelming majority of migrants in the country.
De la Espriella, who assumed office on August 7 after campaigning heavily on security and the fight against organised crime, issued the directive during a security council meeting in the northern city of Barranquilla. He instructed Colombia’s immigration authorities to work with the national police to launch operations aimed at identifying foreigners residing in the country without proper documentation. The first operations are expected to begin this week.
The president said law enforcement would follow a clear order of priority, with foreigners involved in criminal activities to be dealt with first, followed by those whose immigration status has not been regularised. He said individuals falling into the latter category could face deportation under the procedures established by immigration authorities.
De la Espriella adopted a strongly nationalist tone while announcing the policy, declaring that Colombians would come first under his administration. His remarks echoed the “America First” approach associated with US President Donald Trump, whom the Colombian leader has openly admired. The Colombian president has previously pledged to adopt a tougher stance against crime, drug trafficking and armed groups, making immigration enforcement part of a broader security agenda.
The policy is particularly significant because Colombia has been the principal destination for Venezuelans fleeing years of economic and political turmoil in their home country. According to immigration department figures, around 2.8 million Venezuelans were living in Colombia as of June 2026. More than 527,000 of them were reportedly without regular immigration status. Other government figures have placed the number of Venezuelans in irregular status at close to half a million.
For more than a decade, Colombia had generally pursued a comparatively welcoming approach towards Venezuelan migrants. The country introduced a major temporary protection programme under former president Iván Duque in 2021, allowing millions of Venezuelans to obtain legal residence and access basic services. The initiative was widely viewed as an important regional response to Venezuela’s migration crisis. However, regularisation efforts have slowed in recent years, leaving a significant number of migrants without legal status.
The new policy has already triggered criticism from opposition politicians, migrant advocates and human rights activists. Critics argue that targeting undocumented migrants risks portraying an entire migrant population as responsible for crime and could expose vulnerable people to discrimination and arbitrary enforcement. Left-wing senator and activist Maria Jose Pizarro accused the government of seeking to create a Colombian equivalent of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and described the deportation policy as xenophobic.
Supporters of the crackdown, meanwhile, have welcomed the tougher approach, particularly amid public concern over crime and the activities of Venezuelan criminal gangs. Colombian social media users appeared divided following the announcement, with some arguing that stricter enforcement was necessary to improve public security, while others highlighted the contribution made by Venezuelans to Colombian society and the economy.
The announcement also comes at a difficult time for Colombia, which is dealing with the aftermath of a powerful earthquake that struck parts of the country earlier this month and killed more than 300 people. Despite initially presenting himself as a unifying leader following the disaster, De la Espriella has quickly moved to implement the hardline security agenda that was central to his political campaign.
The president’s immigration stance places Colombia within a broader regional trend in which right-wing governments are adopting tougher measures against irregular migration and organised crime. De la Espriella has promised an aggressive campaign against drug trafficking, extortion and armed groups, while also seeking closer cooperation with the United States on security matters.
The scale of the proposed immigration operation, however, remains unclear. Authorities will have to determine how many migrants can actually be processed and deported, while ensuring that any action complies with Colombian immigration law and due-process requirements. With hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans potentially affected, the implementation of the policy could become one of the most consequential tests of De la Espriella’s new administration.
