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EAGLE PASS, Texas — Human smugglers in Mexico raised their rates to cross migrants across the border into the United States as the task of even reaching the southwest border becomes more difficult. Among the number of reasons for that and the causes cited for the rise in smuggling fees is the outcome of the recent presidential election.

Sources in Mexico cite a Trump victory and the anticipated shutting down of the border to migrant crossings as a primary reason for the increase.

Migrants seeking refuge at a charity shelter in Sonora, Mexico, told the staff that the smuggling fee has doubled. A report by Excelsior, one of Mexico City’s oldest newspapers, cited the information relayed to the staff that the basic cost for being guided across the border has risen from $5,000 to a minimum of $10,000 due to the difficulty of crossing the border and the recent election of Donald Trump as president.

The staff of the shelter on the Mexican side of the border across from Arizona told Excelsior they received the information from African, Asian, and Central American migrants hoping to cross the border. The staff was told the increase was first noticed in the summer months as enforcement activities and policies in the United States were instituted to reduce the opportunities for asylum. Another issue reported by the migrants as a major cause for the increase in smuggling fees was the election victory by President-Elect Trump in early November and the anticipated increase in difficulty in crossing the border.

The Excelsior report noted that smugglers can charge significantly higher fees for additional services, such as using vehicles to cross private properties in Mexico, traverse the state of Sonora, and reach the Arizona border. Those fees can range from $15,000 to $20,000.

The raise in fees noted in Excelsior’s report is related to movement through Mexico to the immediate United States border region. Worldwide, migrant smugglers charge fees that can be significantly higher for migrants who travel farther to reach the southwest border. Migrants from China have been known to pay some of the highest fees to reach the United States.

A source operating under the umbrella of U.S. Customs and Border Protection informed Breitbart Texas that most Chinese migrants encountered at the border are military-age males who report paying up to $55,000 each to be smuggled from China to the United States.

As reported by Breitbart Texas, more than 24,000 migrants from the People’s Republic of China were apprehended crossing the southwest border into the United States in fiscal year 2023. According to the source, migrants from North African and Middle Eastern countries pay significant fees as well due to their categorization as Special Interest Aliens.

Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol.  Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.