El Ciudadano
Original article: La promesa de Kast que chocó con la realidad: PDI admite que no puede expulsar a 6 mil venezolanos
Kast’s Promise Collides with Reality: Chile’s PDI Admits Inability to Expel 6,000 Venezuelans
The Investigative Police (PDI) have acknowledged before the Senate that they cannot expel 6,000 Venezuelan citizens, highlighting the structural limitations and barriers surrounding José Antonio Kast‘s main campaign pledge of mass deportation for foreigners with criminal records or irregular status.
During a session of the Senate’s Government Commission, amidst discussions about a bill that seeks to criminalize unlawful entry, PDI’s chief of Migration, Ernesto León, provided insight into the challenges the agency faces in executing these expulsions.
«We have been unable to expel Venezuelan citizens; currently, we have almost six thousand pending expulsions,» he admitted to lawmakers.
«No Consular Relations»
He stated that the primary obstacle to implementing these measures stems from the breakdown of diplomatic and consular relations between Chile and Venezuela, making it impossible to coordinate returns.
«There are no consular relations; we cannot identify them, and they do not accept us,» León asserted, noting that flights for expulsions to Caracas have been suspended since June 2025, leaving thousands of expulsion orders unfulfilled.
These hurdles became evident last week when Kast’s administration organized its first expulsion flight with 40 migrants, including citizens from Colombia, Bolivia, and Ecuador, but no Venezuelans, despite their significant presence in Chile.
$3 Million Cost per Migrant for Deportation
In addition to diplomatic difficulties, there are economic and logistical factors impacting the state.
Each expulsion of a migrant, particularly a Venezuelan, can cost around $3 million per person, considering transportation, police custody, and international coordination, which translates to $18 billion for 6,000 expulsions.
This figure limits the feasibility of implementing the mass deportation plan promised by Kast during the electoral campaign.
Frank Sauerbaum, the director of the Migration Service, suggested that the cost may vary depending on the type of operation. In a conversation with 24 Horas, he explained that for a commercial flight, the cost is close to $3 million per person, including the custody of two PDI officers per deportee, as per international standards.
If using a FACh flight, the cost reduces to $2.5 million per expelled migrant, as only one PDI officer would accompany them.
Insufficient Budget for Expelling 6,000 Venezuelans
Another critical factor to consider is the budget required to tackle this issue. Sauerbaum admitted that currently available funds amount to $4 billion, far below the $18 billion needed to execute the 6,000 pending orders.
«We are exploring alternatives… the service had an excess of $31 billion last year, and we requested that a portion be allocated to expulsions,» he stated to the cited media outlet.
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