March as a whole is up 24% from the same month last year, when 169,000 migrants were picked up at the border, the start of an increase in immigration that left thousands of unaccompanied children trapped in busy border patrols for days while waiting. in shelters paid for by the government. Biden, a Democrat who took office in January 2021, has vowed to reverse many of the hardline immigration policies of his Republican predecessor, former President Donald Trump, but has struggled with both operational and political issues. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Republicans hoping to gain control of the US Congress in the Nov. 8 midterm elections say Biden’s recall of Trump-era politicians has encouraged more illegal immigration. Biden officials warned that immigration could increase further after U.S. health officials said they would end a pandemic-era border order by May 23rd. The mandate, known as Title 42, allows asylum seekers and other immigrants to be quickly deported to Mexico to prevent the spread of COVID-19. read more ARCHIVE PHOTO – Immigrants seeking asylum leave the Rio Bravo River after crossing it to be handed over to U.S. Border Patrol agents to seek asylum in El Paso, Texas, USA, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico 2022. REUTERS / Jose Luis Gonzalez While more than half of the migrants who met at the US-Mexico border in recent months were from traditional shipping countries of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, migrants are increasingly arriving from farther afield, including Ukraine and of Russia. . U.S. officials are preparing for up to 18,000 immigrant meetings a day in the coming weeks, but are also prepared for smaller increases. read more The 210,000 immigrants arrested in March, a number released in court on Friday night, are the highest monthly total recorded since February 2000, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection statistics dating back to 2000. Another 11,000 migrants attempted to enter a legal crossing along the southwestern border in March without a valid visa or permit, according to a court statement. About half of the migrants who met in March were expelled under Title 42, according to the court. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Ted Hesson in Washington. Edited by Diane Craft Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.