Customs and Border Protection is increasing its total recruitment and retention incentives, as the Department of Homeland Security touts a record year for job applications.

CBP says new Border Patrol agents can now get up to $60,000 in incentives, including $10,000 after completing academy training and $10,000 for those assigned to a remote locations. Newly appointed Border Patrol agents can then qualify for up to $40,000 in retention incentives over the next four years.

Current Border Patrol agents are eligible to receive up to $50,000 in retention incentives.

Meanwhile, new officers assigned to “hard-to-fill and most difficult-to-fill locations” under CBP’s Office of Field Operations are eligible for up to $60,000 in retention incentives over a three year contract. CBP is also offering up to $60,000 in retention incentives for “experienced supervisors and officers eligible to retire in certain locations.”

New CBP Air and Marine Operations agents are also eligible for $10,000 signing bonuses, while new and current AMO agents can get up to 25% of their salary in retention incentives.

The increased incentives are funded under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The bill provided $4.1 billion for CBP to hire 5,000 customs officers and 3,000 border patrol agents over the next four years.

CBP for several years has offered both recruitment and retention incentives, as it prepares for an expected officer retirement surge starting in fiscal 2027.

The Department of Homeland Security, in an annual review, said CBP’s monthly hiring averages increased by 42.5% compared to the same time period last year. Meanwhile, hiring of Border Patrol agents increased by 84% over the same time last year, according to DHS.

ICE hiring surges, but under scrutiny

DHS also said Immigration and Customs Enforcement is on track to hire 10,000 new officers by the end of 2025. ICE has also offered $10,000 recruitment incentives and changed its minimum officer age to 18 years old to facilitate the recruitment campaign.

DHS said it has received a record number of job applications in 2025 at agencies including ICE, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Secret Service.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which passed in July, included $8 billion for the ICE hiring spree.

“Some” of the new ICE officers are already on the job, according to DHS.

But House Homeland Security Committee Democrats are now asking the Government Accountability Office to review ICE’s hiring practices.

In a Dec. 18 letter led by Ranking Member Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) to GAO, the lawmakers point to media reports that ICE has put some new recruits into training without doing background checks and other standard vetting.

“This rapid expansion – the most significant staffing increase in the agency’s history – raises important questions about how ICE has changed its hiring standards and training protocols to meet its staffing aims,” the letter to GAO states.

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