Mass deportations, or rather the promised repatriations and already carried out by the US president Donald Trump, can have a significant impact on the GDP of some Latin American countries, in particular Central America And in the Caraibi. As is known, the vast majority of illegal immigrants in the USA they come from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala e Honduras (with main destinations California, Texas, Arizona e New Mexico): it is about 27,7 million workers which according to the calculations of the BID (Inter-American Development Bank) in 2024 sent a total of 161 billion dollars.
The impact of remittances on the GDP of Latin American countries
If for countries like Mexico and Colombia this money is worth "only" the 3% of Gross Domestic Product, for others – Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Jamaica and Haiti – the value of remittances reaches up to a quarter or more of the GDP. The highest figure is precisely that of Nicaragua, which touches the 28 %. That is the 28% of GDP is generated by Nicaraguan emigrants working in the United States. But it is also worth mentioning the 25,9% of Honduras' GDP, 23,5% of El Salvador, 17% of Jamaica. If all the repatriations wanted by the new White House administration were to actually come to fruition, the GDPs of those countries would risk collapsing by a long way.
The Latino Worker Economy in the United States
In short, the Trump's muscle strategy it is not only questionable from the point of view umanitario, but also from that financial. As the Episcopal Bishop recalled Mariann Budde during the'opening day, arousing the irritation of the tycoon's entourage, these are workers who carry out jobs socially fundamental including caregiving, cleaning, Catering, home deliveryOf the total money that Latin American emigrants send home, including Europe and other Latin American countries,80 % comes from the United States.
Il employment rate of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants to the U.S. was in 2024 95,2 %, up by 3,4 % compared to the previous year. Even the average weekly wage, albeit in difficult and precarious conditions, is reported to be growing compared to the past: in the first quarter of 2024 it almost reached dollars 900 per week, the maximum value in the last 18 years for this specific category of workers. The data is better than the 5% compared to 2023, but according to what the BID itself admits, it is certainly underestimated compared to reality, which also foresees a lot informal work and especially cash payment, since many of these immigrants are illegal and do not have access to a bank account. Even more difficult is to calculate how many dollars arrive in Venezuela, which places a strict limit on the entry of North American currency into the country. Many immigrants use the scheme of triangulation, sending the money to other South American countries and changing the currency. The IDB estimates that a Caracas and surroundings are shipped 4 billion dollars the year, at least.
