President Trump has moved to fulfill a campaign pledge by accelerating deportation efforts, in part with the controversial use of a wartime law to expedite removals. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement data show a higher pace of arrests since Trump took office, but a slightly slower pace for deportations than in the final year of the Biden administration.
For immigrants living in the country, here’s how a deportation generally unfolds:
Who is arrested
During Trump’s second term, ICE has increasingly arrested people suspected of being in the U.S. illegally—even those who haven’t been through immigration court. Previously, ICE targeted people who had already been through immigration court proceedings and been issued with a deportation order.
To make an arrest, immigration agents need an administrative warrant. These warrants, issued only by federal agencies, don’t authorize a search, and an immigrant doesn’t have to comply or answer the door if an agent is knocking.
How arrests unfold
Unless ICE is targeting a specific person, agents often focus on places where they can make the most arrests possible. They might raid a worksite or visit a home or neighborhood where immigrants tend to congregate. Many immigration lawyers say these methods have led to racial profiling and mistaken targeting of U.S. citizens. ICE didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Most commonly, ICE gets assistance from other law enforcement, including local, state and federal agencies, as well as the military and the National Guard. In some areas, local police will work with ICE and detain people on the agency’s behalf until ICE agents come to arrest them. Police departments in sanctuary cities don’t typically comply with ICE.
Detention
ICE has about 90 detention centers across the country. Arrested people are taken to these facilities, which could have the following outcomes:
Expedited removal
Immigrants who can’t prove they have been in the U.S. longer than two years may be sent home immediately without a court hearing. Trump has expanded this power; previously, it applied only to people in the country illegally fewer than two weeks and found within 100 miles of the border.
Legal proceedings
Other immigrants enter regular deportation proceedings that can take years. ICE will release some detained immigrants who aren’t considered a flight risk or a danger to public safety, or assign them a bond amount. If the immigrant posts bond, they will remain free throughout the court process. Those who aren’t eligible to pay bond are detained through their entire case. The Laken Riley Act, which Trump signed into law in January, expands the list of reasons for someone to be detained without receiving bond, including if they were charged with shoplifting or theft.
Asylum
Immigrants who are fighting their deportation, whether through expedited or regular proceedings, can apply for asylum, beginning a separate legal case—if they believe they would be persecuted or tortured upon returning home.
Voluntary departure
At any time, an immigrant can decide not to continue fighting their deportation case and leave the country. They would still have a formal deportation on their record, meaning they would be barred from returning to the U.S. on a visa for at least five years.
Detained immigrants will receive a notice to appear in immigration court, which is run by the Justice Department. The NTA document contains the government’s allegations against the immigrant:
- They aren’t a citizen
- They have no legal basis to be in the country
- Or they have a green card but were charged with a crime that disqualifies them from residency.
What Happens in Court
The initial hearing is primarily for administrative purposes. A judge will check that the right individual is present, confirm their address and ask if they need time to get a lawyer. They aren’t guaranteed an attorney by the federal government but can choose to find one independently.
At a subsequent hearing, a judge will ask if the immigrant is challenging their deportation or if they want to delay the court proceedings to apply for relief from removal. That could include applying for asylum or asking to change their status to a visa or green-card holder. Some immigrants applying for relief from removal can ask for permission to work if they are free on bond.
Next a judge will set a date for a merits hearing, when an immigrant or their attorney can present evidence for why they shouldn’t be deported. A judge will decide if the immigrant should be deported.
If a judge orders the immigrant deported, the immigrant has the right to appeal to the Justice Department and the federal court system. The appeals process can take months or years, during which there is an automatic hold on the deportation order. Often immigrants who have been detained don’t appeal because it means they would remain in detention during the lengthy appeals process.
Immigrants with deportation orders can also ask a judge to reopen their case if, for example, they get married to a U.S. citizen and may be eligible for a green card.
Deportation
Immigrants who go through the court process and are ordered to be deported don’t go home immediately. ICE makes the travel plans for these immigrants, including arranging flights or, if the deportee is Mexican, driving them across the border. The immigrants must have their travel documents to go home. If they don’t have a passport, they have to apply for one from their home country.
Certain countries, including China and Venezuela, haven’t accepted deportees in the past. In that case, federal authorities must find another destination country. Arranging deportation travel can take weeks or months. If it takes longer than six months, immigrants have the right to challenge their continued detention.
