U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE, is the federal agency inside the Department of Homeland Security that enforces immigration and customs laws and investigates cross-border crime. It was created in 2003 and operates on a fiscal year 2026 budget request of roughly $11.3 billion with more than 21,800 authorized positions.1Department of Homeland Security. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Budget Overview Fiscal Year 2026 Congressional Justification Its work is split across three divisions, and each one touches the public in a different way.
What ICE Does
ICE reports to the Secretary of Homeland Security and runs field offices covering every state and U.S. territory.2USAGov. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Its three operational arms handle very different work.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is the criminal side. HSI agents investigate human trafficking, narcotics smuggling, illegal weapons exports, money laundering, cybercrime, intellectual property theft, and child exploitation. Their authority comes from federal customs law under Title 19 of the U.S. Code.3U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Customs Cross Designation These are criminal cases that end in federal indictments and prison sentences, not deportation orders.
Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) is the civil immigration side, and it is what most people picture when they hear “ICE.” ERO identifies, arrests, detains, and removes noncitizens who lack legal status or who have been ordered removed by an immigration judge. It receives about $6.25 billion of the FY 2026 request, more than half the agency’s total.1Department of Homeland Security. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Budget Overview Fiscal Year 2026 Congressional Justification
The Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) is the agency’s courtroom presence. OPLA attorneys represent the government in immigration court, arguing for removal and responding to asylum and protection claims. With more than 3.3 million cases pending in immigration court as of early 2026, OPLA’s docket is very large.
How ICE Detains and Removes People
ERO runs a nationwide system for holding people while their immigration cases move through the courts. Federal law gives the agency broad detention authority, and in some situations detention is mandatory. Under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c), ICE must take custody of noncitizens who are deportable because of certain criminal convictions, including aggravated felonies, controlled substance offenses, firearms violations, and specific terrorism-related grounds.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1226 – Apprehension and Detention of Aliens For other people, the agency has discretion to release on bond of at least $1,500 or on conditional parole.
Detention facilities must meet published national standards covering health care, access to legal materials, conditions of confinement, and civil rights protections. Different standards apply to dedicated ICE facilities and to local jails held under contract.5U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Detention Management
Not everyone in removal proceedings is locked up. ICE also runs an Alternatives to Detention (ATD) program that supervises adults in the community using GPS ankle monitors, smartphone check-ins, or in-person reporting. Officers decide who is eligible based on criminal history, immigration record, family and community ties, caregiver responsibilities, and humanitarian or medical factors.6U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Alternatives to Detention About $486 million is allocated to these programs in the FY 2026 request.1Department of Homeland Security. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Budget Overview Fiscal Year 2026 Congressional Justification
Removal is the final step. Once an immigration judge issues a final order, ERO officers arrange transportation back to the person’s country of origin. The Immigration and Nationality Act governs the whole process, and a person who fails to appear after receiving proper written notice can be ordered removed in absentia.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1229a – Removal Proceedings
When Local Police Work with ICE
Many people first come into contact with ICE indirectly, through a local jail or police department. Two mechanisms drive that cooperation.
287(g) Agreements
Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act lets DHS enter written agreements deputizing state and local officers to perform certain immigration enforcement functions under ICE supervision.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1357 – Powers of Immigration Officers and Employees Participating officers receive federal training and follow federal immigration law when carrying out those duties. As of March 2026, ICE reported 1,579 signed memoranda of agreement covering 39 states and 2 U.S. territories.9U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Delegation of Immigration Authority Section 287(g) Immigration and Nationality Act Scope varies: some agreements are limited to screening people inside local jails, others allow broader field participation.
Immigration Detainers
An immigration detainer is a request ICE sends to a jail or law enforcement agency asking for two things: advance notice before the person is released, and continued custody for up to 48 hours (excluding weekends and holidays) so ICE can pick the person up.10U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Immigration Detainers It is issued on an administrative form and is authorized under 8 CFR 287.7.11eCFR. 8 CFR 287.7 – Detainer Provisionsp>
Detainers are requests, not commands. Whether the local agency holds someone past their release depends on that agency’s own policies and on court rulings in its jurisdiction. Some localities honor every detainer. Others refuse to extend custody without a judicial warrant.
Your Rights During an ICE Encounter
Everyone in the United States, regardless of immigration status, has constitutional protections during encounters with law enforcement. Enforcement actions move quickly, and what you say or do in the first few minutes can shape the rest of your case.
You Can Stay Silent
You are not required to discuss your immigration status, your citizenship, or your country of origin with ICE or any other officer. Anything you say can be used against you in immigration court. You can state out loud that you are exercising your right to remain silent.
You Do Not Have To Open the Door Without a Judicial Warrant
The Fourth Amendment protects your home against unreasonable searches and seizures. A judicial warrant, signed by a judge, is the constitutional standard for entering a home without the occupant’s consent. ICE more commonly carries administrative warrants, Form I-200 for arrest and Form I-205 for removal, which are signed by an ICE supervisor rather than a judge. Under longstanding constitutional precedent, an administrative warrant authorizes the arrest of a named person but does not authorize agents to force their way into a private residence. If agents come to your door, you can ask them to slide the warrant under the door so you can check for a judge’s signature.
In early 2026, DHS took the public position that administrative warrants may satisfy the Fourth Amendment for certain arrests of noncitizens, while civil liberties organizations and some federal courts have maintained that only a judicial warrant authorizes nonconsensual home entry. The legal fight is ongoing. The practical rule is the same either way: you do not have to open your door for an administrative warrant, and you can ask to see any warrant first.
You Can Hire an Attorney, but the Government Will Not Provide One
If ICE detains you or places you in removal proceedings, you have the right to be represented by counsel. Federal law is explicit that this representation comes “at no expense to the Government.”12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1362 – Right to Counsel That is a major difference from criminal court. Nonprofit legal aid groups represent some people for free, but demand outstrips supply. Immigration hearings themselves are conducted by an immigration judge under 8 U.S.C. § 1229a, with the government represented by an OPLA attorney on the other side.
You Can Verify Who the Agents Are
Ask anyone claiming to be an ICE agent to show a government-issued badge and credentials. Legitimate agents carry official identification. If someone refuses to identify themselves, treat that as a warning sign. You can record the interaction and write down badge numbers, names, and any other identifying details.
Where ICE Can Now Operate
For years, an internal DHS policy discouraged enforcement at “sensitive” or “protected” locations such as schools, hospitals, places of worship, and courthouses. That policy no longer exists. On January 20, 2025, DHS rescinded it. A memorandum from the Secretary of Homeland Security explicitly superseded the October 2021 protected areas guidelines.13Department of Homeland Security. Enforcement Actions in or Near Protected Areas Under the replacement guidance, ICE officials may authorize enforcement at those formerly protected locations. The new memo requires agents to consult with ICE legal counsel before enforcement at public demonstrations, but it imposes no comparable restriction for schools, hospitals, or churches. If you or your family had been relying on the older policy as a shield, that shield is gone.
Protection for Crime Victims
Federal immigration law includes a carve-out for noncitizen crime victims who cooperate with police and prosecutors. The most widely used is the U visa, which grants temporary legal status to victims of qualifying crimes who have suffered substantial physical or mental abuse and who help law enforcement investigate or prosecute the case. Applying requires a law enforcement certification on Form I-918, Supplement B, signed by an authorized official who confirms the cooperation.14U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Victims of Criminal Activity: U Nonimmigrant Status The annual cap is 10,000 visas, and processing times are long, so approved applicants often wait years for status to be finalized.