Fact Check: Is Trump's claim no illegal aliens were admitted to America in last nine months true?

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump's State of the Union address on Tuesday, February 24, was a record-breaking event, as it was the longest in US history, lasting more than one and a half hours.

During his speech, the POTUS made several claims. One such claim was that no illegal aliens were admitted to America in the last nine months. But is there any truth to this? Let us find out below.

Claim: No illegal aliens were admitted to America in last nine months

During his SOTU speech on Tuesday, Donald Trump claimed, "In the past nine months, zero illegal aliens have been admitted to the United States."

He added, "But we will always allow people to come in legally, people who will love our country and will work hard to maintain our country."

Delivered to a joint session of Congress in the House Chamber, with House Speaker Mike Johnson and Vice President JD Vance presiding, the President opened by proclaiming that "our nation is back - bigger, better, richer, and stronger than ever before". 

He then framed the first year in his second term as a 'turnaround for the ages' and the start of a 'golden age' for America ahead of its 250th anniversary. 

Trump's tone throughout the speech was triumphant, combative, and focused on achievements to rally Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterms, while mostly downplaying ongoing voter concerns, such as broader affordability challenges.

Fact Check: False, crossings are down, but not completely

The claim made by Donald Trump during the SOTU speech that no illegal aliens were admitted to America in the last nine months is not true. 

The Trump administration has mostly decreased the number of people who crossed the border illegally, down from the record highs of the Biden administration.

As per the data collected by Customs and Border Protection, there were over 1.5 million encounters with migrants attempting to illegally cross the border in 2024, the last full year of former President Joe Biden's presidency. 

Meanwhile, in 2025, the first full year of Trump's second term in office, that number came down to just under 28,000.

Interestingly, the low trends continue in 2026, but have never been at 'zero' as claimed by the POTUS. The numbers suggest migrants are still trying to cross the border, and it would be impossible to know if any had gone through unnoticed.

During his speech, Trump also claimed that he ended 'eight wars' in the first 10 months of his second term as the POTUS. However, the claim was also debunked as Trump influenced some de-escalations or negotiations, but many weren't active 'wars', weren't fully ended, and figures were inflated.