Form I-352: Immigration Bond Obligor Duties, CeBONDS, and Breach

Form I-352 is the immigration bond contract that Immigration and Customs Enforcement uses to release someone from detention in exchange for a financial guarantee. When you sign it as the obligor, you are promising ICE that the detained person will meet the conditions of their release, and you are putting your money behind that promise. If they don’t, ICE keeps the money. The minimum for a standard delivery bond is $1,500, and immigration judges routinely set amounts of $4,000 or higher.¹

What the Bond Guarantees Depends on the Type

The form covers four bond types, and each one guarantees something different. Identifying the correct type is a required field on the form itself.²

A delivery bond is the most common. The obligor guarantees the detained person will show up at every immigration court hearing, interview, and removal appointment. The federal minimum is $1,500.¹
A voluntary departure bond guarantees the person will leave the United States by the court-ordered deadline. Missing that deadline forfeits the bond.³
A public charge bond ensures the person will not receive government-funded public assistance. If they do, the obligor must repay the benefits used, up to the full bond amount.³
An order of supervision bond covers someone with a final removal order who cannot be immediately deported. The obligor guarantees compliance with reporting requirements and surrender for removal when ICE calls.³

The category chosen on the form controls what counts as a breach later, so it matters that the right box is checked.

Who Is Allowed to Sign as Obligor

ICE limits bond posting to U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, law firms, and non-profit organizations. In limited circumstances the detained person can post their own voluntary departure or order of supervision bond.⁴

Each category has its own document list, verified during posting:

U.S. citizens submit a passport, birth certificate, naturalization certificate, REAL ID-compliant driver’s license, or military identification.
Lawful permanent residents submit a green card or military identification.
Non-profits submit their IRS determination letter, EIN approval letter, a letter authorizing the representative posting the bond, and that representative’s ID.
Law firms submit their EIN approval letter, an authorization letter, and the representative’s ID.

Have these ready before you start. The system will not move forward without them.⁴

Cash Bond or Surety Bond

An obligor posting directly with ICE pays the full bond in cash by electronic transfer. If the bond is $10,000, $10,000 leaves your bank account. The upside is that the whole amount comes back with interest once the bond is cancelled.

The alternative is hiring a surety company, which posts the bond for you in exchange for a non-refundable premium. Surety companies must hold a Certificate of Authority from the U.S. Treasury, listed in Department Circular 570, and you can verify authorization on the Bureau of the Fiscal Service website or by calling the Surety Bond Branch at 304-480-6635.⁵

The tradeoff is straightforward. A cash bond ties up a large sum for the entire life of the case, which can stretch for years. A surety bond needs less money upfront, but the premium is gone regardless of how the case turns out.⁶

How to Post the Bond Through CeBONDS

ICE has moved most bond posting to an electronic system called CeBONDS. Walking into a field office with a cashier’s check is no longer the norm, though ICE will work with obligors case by case if in-person posting is necessary.⁴

To post electronically, register for a CeBONDS account on the ICE website and complete identity verification. You will need the detained person’s full legal name, their Alien Registration Number (A-Number, an eight- or nine-digit identifier from detention paperwork or court correspondence), and confirmation of the facility currently holding them.

Payment goes through Fedwire or ACH transfer. Personal checks, cashier’s checks, and cash are not accepted through the electronic system.⁴

Bond posting runs Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the time zone of the detention facility. Verification and payment review typically take one to two hours. Requests received after hours process the next business day. Once the bond is approved and Form I-352 is signed, the detained person is usually released by the end of the following day.⁴

What You Are Legally On the Hook For

Signing Form I-352 creates enforceable duties that last until the case ends or ICE cancels the bond. You are the surety, the detained person is the principal, and ICE is the beneficiary.²

For a delivery bond, the core duty is making sure the person appears at every hearing, every interview, and for removal if that is ordered. If the person moves, you must notify ICE of the new address promptly. If ICE demands the person be produced and you cannot deliver them, that is treated as a total breach.

The bond stays active until ICE formally cancels it by issuing Form I-391. A case that drags on for years means your obligation continues for years.⁴

The legal standard for the obligor’s performance is “substantial performance,” meaning you must satisfy all major conditions. Meeting most of them but missing a critical one, like failing to ensure the person appears for a hearing, will not save the bond from forfeiture.⁷

What Happens If the Bond Is Breached

A bond is breached when there is a “substantial violation” of its conditions.⁷ The most common trigger is a failure to appear. When ICE determines a breach has occurred, it issues Form I-323, the Notice of Immigration Bond Breached, which identifies the date of the breach and explains appeal rights.⁸

The financial consequence is forfeiture of the entire bond amount. A cash obligor loses every dollar deposited. If a surety company posted the bond, ICE collects the full amount from the company, which can then pursue the obligor or any collateral pledged.

An obligor can appeal a breach determination to the Administrative Appeals Office by filing Form I-290B. The deadline is 30 calendar days from service of the breach notice, or 33 days if the notice was mailed.⁹ For surety companies, failing to file a timely appeal waives and forfeits all claims and defenses related to the breach, and ICE can move immediately to collect.⁷ A timely appeal keeps the breach determination inoperative, so ICE cannot collect until the AAO decides.

Cancellation, Refund, and Interest

The bond stays in effect until ICE issues Form I-391, the Notice of Immigration Bond Cancelled. Cancellation typically happens when the immigration case concludes, the person departs the country, or they adjust to lawful status.⁴

Once the bond is cancelled, ICE refunds the cash deposit plus applicable interest to the obligor at the address on file.² For bonds posted on the current version of the form, ICE no longer issues Form I-305 (Receipt of Officer) and no longer requires submission of Form I-305 or Form I-395 to get the refund. ICE issues the refund to whoever its records identify as entitled to receive it.¹⁰

Cash deposited as bond security earns interest while the government holds it. The rate is set by the Secretary of the Treasury and is capped at 3 percent per year by federal statute. Interest begins accruing on the date of deposit and continues until the money is withdrawn or the bond is breached, whichever comes first. Even if the bond is later breached, interest that accrued up to the date of breach is still paid to the obligor. Only the principal is forfeited. For bonds cancelled normally, the obligor receives the full deposit plus all accrued interest.¹¹

Keep your address current with ICE for the entire life of the bond. The refund check goes to the address on file, and chasing a misdirected government payment adds months to an already slow process. For questions about a refund after cancellation or breach, the Financial Service Center Burlington handles bond refund inquiries at BondRefund.HelpDesk@ice.dhs.gov or 877-491-6521 (Option 1).⁴

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1226 – Apprehension and Detention of Aliens
2
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE Form I-352 – Immigration Bond
3
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Form I-352 Immigration Bond
4
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Post a Bond
5
Bureau of the Fiscal Service. Department Circular 570
6
Office of Management and Budget. Supporting Statement – Immigration Bond ICE Form I-352
7
eCFR. 8 CFR 103.6 – Immigration Bonds
8
Federal Register. Immigration Bond Notifications
9
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion
10
Regulations.gov. Agency Information Collection Activities; Revision of a Currently Approved Collection: Immigration Bond
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1363 – Deposit of and Interest on Cash Received to Secure Immigration Bonds