Detained by ICE: Find, Bond Out and Defend the Case

How to find someone in ICE custody: the Online Detainee Locator

ICE's Online Detainee Locator System is the official way to find an adult in ICE custody. It is free and needs no account. It covers people currently in ICE custody and people held by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for more than 48 hours. There are two ways to search:

1. By A-number and country of birth. ICE recommends this search. The A-number (Alien Registration Number) is on any notice from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), USCIS or the immigration court; enter it as nine digits, adding a zero in front of an eight-digit number.
2. By name, country of birth and date of birth. The first and last name must match exactly as ICE recorded them; the form also asks for the month, day and year of birth, so have them ready.

A result shows the person's status ("In ICE Custody", "In CBP Custody" or "Not In Custody"), the state and the current detention facility; clicking the facility name gives its contact information. Some browsers and security tools block the locator; if it will not load, try another browser or device. "Not In Custody" means that within the last 60 days the person was released (for example on bond, or after the case was resolved), removed or departed, or transferred to another agency; the locator does not say which.

What to have ready before you search or call

• the person's full legal name, every spelling and both last names, and any other names they have used;
• date of birth and country of birth (not citizenship — the locator and facilities search by birth country);
• the A-number, if the person ever had a case with DHS or the immigration court — look on old notices, a work permit or a court hearing notice;
• where and when the arrest happened, and which agency made it (ICE, CBP or local police);
• your own name and a phone number where you can be reached, for messages the facility passes to the detainee.

Why someone may not show up yet

An empty search does not always mean the person is not detained. The common reasons:

• The first hours and the first 48. ICE says locator information may be up to eight hours old. People held by CBP — for example after being stopped at the border or a port of entry — appear only once they have been in CBP custody for more than 48 hours, so in the first two days the locator may show nothing. Search again later, at different times of day.
• A transfer in progress. The locator does not show transfers that are planned or under way; the person reappears once booked into the new facility, which can be in another state. See transfers to another state below.
• CBP or ICE? CBP (the Border Patrol and officers at ports of entry) arrests mostly at or near the border; ICE arrests in the interior. Both feed the same locator, but CBP holding stations are short-term: a person is either released, removed or handed to ICE, and only then is booked into an ICE facility.
• Still in a local jail on an ICE hold. A person arrested by police for something else may still be in a city or county jail on an ICE detainer — a request that the jail tell ICE before release and keep the person so ICE can take custody. Under 8 C.F.R. § 287.7(d), a detainer asks the jail to hold the person for no more than 48 hours, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, beyond the time they would otherwise be released. Until ICE picks the person up, they are in the jail's records, not ICE's: call the jail or search its inmate locator.
• Spelling and data. Names are recorded as ICE entered them. Try the A-number instead of the name, other spellings, one or both last names, and the country of birth rather than citizenship.
• Children. The locator cannot search for anyone under 18. Unaccompanied children are transferred to the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services (its Office of Refugee Resettlement), not held in ICE detention (8 U.S.C. § 1232(b)(3)).

Calling the detention facility and ICE

Once you know the facility, open its page in ICE's detention facility list. Each page gives the address and main phone number and has sections on contacting a detainee, legal and case information, hours of visitation and sending items. On the pages we read, the facility answers questions about a detainee by phone if you give the person's biographical information — first, last and hyphenated names, any aliases, date of birth and country of birth. Detainees cannot receive incoming calls: to get in touch, call the facility and leave the detainee's full name, A-number and your name and phone number, and the message is passed to them. Many facilities also have tablets through which family can send non-confidential messages; the facility page names the service.

Other official lines:

• ICE Detention Reporting and Information Line, 1-888-351-4024 (Monday–Friday except holidays, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern; ICE's enforcement concerns page says Spanish-speaking operators are available). It answers questions about detained cases and is where ICE asks people to report an address change.
• ICE field offices. Each detention facility belongs to an Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) field office (Adelanto, for example, to Los Angeles). ICE's field office list says those offices are not check-in locations and that the emails listed there are for recruiting only, so the facility and the detention line are the practical channels for family. The deportation officer assigned to the case is normally reached by the person's lawyer, after filing a Form G-28 through ICE's ERO eFile system.
• The immigration court. If ICE has filed a case, EOIR's Automated Case Information portal shows the court, the next hearing and any decision by A-number; see how to check an immigration court date.

As of October 2, 2026, ICE's website carries a notice that, because of the lapse in federal funding, it "will not be actively managed." Facility pages may therefore be out of date; confirm hours and rules by phone before relying on them.

Once you have found a family member in ICE custody, the next question is usually release; our immigration bond lawyer page explains how a former immigration judge approaches a bond request.

Putting money on account, mail and visits

Money on a detainee's account

Detainees use an account at the facility to buy items such as stamps and commissary goods. How family can deposit money differs by facility — the facility page and the facility's phone line give the current methods and any approved vendor. On the facility page we read, funds received in the mail are placed into the detainee's account against a receipt, and the facility warns not to send cash through the mail. Detainees with no money in their account still receive postage for mail at government expense. Keep every receipt.

Mail and items

Letters generally must show the detainee's name and A-number (some facilities ask for only its last four digits) and housing unit, and the sender's name and address; incoming mail is opened and inspected for contraband. Packages and clothing are usually not accepted without the deportation officer's approval — for example, clothing or a small piece of luggage for release or removal. When a detainee is transferred, the facility we checked forwards only legal mail and returns other letters to sender.

Visiting

Each facility sets its own visiting days and hours, often by housing unit, and they change without notice — check the facility page and call before going. Typical rules on the pages we read: every adult visitor needs government-issued photo identification (a U.S. federal or state ID, or a foreign passport — at Adelanto, with a valid U.S. visa), visitors under 18 must come with an adult, visits are limited to about an hour, the number of visitors is capped, there is a dress code, and you should arrive early for security screening. A visitor without lawful status should consider the risk and talk to a lawyer before going to an ICE facility. Lawyers visit separately, without the family schedule, and can arrange confidential calls and video visits.

Next steps: bond, the court date and when to call a lawyer

1. Find out if there is a bond — and under which law. ICE may set a bond, refuse one, or treat the person as ineligible. Whether an immigration judge can review that depends on the law ICE holds the person under, explained below; our immigration bond hearings guide covers bond hearings, amounts and how bond is posted with ICE.
2. Find the court and the first hearing date. A detained person's case moves fast on the detained docket. EOIR expedites detained cases, so look up the A-number in its case portal often and do not wait for a letter.
3. Collect documents. Proof of identity, entry, years in the U.S., family ties and any court records for past arrests are needed for both bond and the defense (listed under defending the case).
4. Call a lawyer early — before the first hearing, and right away if the person has an old removal order, a criminal arrest or conviction, entered without inspection, fears return to their country, is being pressured to sign papers, or is about to be moved. The first days decide whether bond is asked for, whether the case is classified correctly and whether removal can be stopped. See our deportation defense lawyer page, or call Carlos Maury Law at (213) 769-0050.

For help with a bond request or a family member held by ICE, see our immigration bond lawyer page. If ICE comes to your home, see your rights if ICE comes to your door.

Who enforces immigration law: ICE and CBP

Two agencies of the Department of Homeland Security make most immigration arrests. Inside the United States it is mainly Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), through its Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), which ICE says manages "the identification, arrest, detention and removal" of people who are subject to removal or unlawfully present in the U.S. At the border it is U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP): CBP officers of the Office of Field Operations inspect people at ports of entry and decide whether they are admissible, and the U.S. Border Patrol works between the ports of entry.

An arrest by either agency can lead to detention and to removal proceedings before an immigration judge. Some people can instead be placed in expedited removal: under INA § 235(b)(1), 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(1), an immigration officer can order a person who arrives without valid entry documents or by fraud — and certain others who were never admitted or paroled — removed "without further hearing or review," unless the person says they want to apply for asylum or fears persecution; then an asylum officer holds a credible fear interview (see Expedited Removal and the Credible Fear Interview). Many people held by ICE — those detained under INA § 236(a) — can ask an immigration judge for a bond hearing, but the law makes detention mandatory for some, including under INA § 236(c), 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c). Which rule applies is explained in the next section.

Which law decides whether they can be released

Everything about release depends on the statute under which ICE is holding the person. There are four main ones, and they lead to very different results:

• Section 236(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) — discretionary detention. The government may hold a person while removal proceedings go on, or release them on a bond of at least $1,500 or on conditional parole. People held here can ask an immigration judge to review ICE's custody decision (8 C.F.R. § 236.1(d)).
• INA § 236(c), 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c) — mandatory detention. People removable on listed criminal or terrorism grounds, and since January 29, 2025 the group added by the Laken Riley Act (people who entered without inspection or lack documents and who are charged with, arrested for, convicted of or admit certain theft, burglary, assault-on-officer or serious-injury offenses), "shall" be detained. An immigration judge cannot set bond for them, though a judge can decide whether they really belong in that category.
• INA § 235(b), 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b) — "applicants for admission." People stopped at the border or a port of entry, people in expedited removal, and — under the government's position since 2025 — people who entered without inspection are treated as applicants for admission who "shall be detained." Release is generally only by ICE parole under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(d)(5)(A). People in expedited removal can be ordered removed without a hearing before a judge unless they say they want to apply for asylum or fear persecution, and they must be detained until their credible fear claim is decided (§ 1225(b)(1)). Whether this section reaches long-time residents who entered without inspection is the most contested detention question of 2025–26 (see below).
• INA § 241, 8 U.S.C. § 1231 — detention after a final order of removal. Different rules and different deadlines apply; see detention after a removal order.

ICE does not always say which section it relies on, and the paperwork can be wrong. The Notice to Appear (how the person entered, the charges), the arrest record and any prior order usually show the answer. Getting that classification right — or challenging it — is often the single most important step in a detention case.

Release: bond, parole and alternatives to detention

There are three main routes out of detention before the case ends:

• Bond. For people held under § 1226(a), ICE sets an initial bond or no bond, and the person can ask an immigration judge for a custody redetermination (bond hearing). The judge weighs whether the person is a danger to the community and whether they are likely to appear for future hearings. Our immigration bond hearings guide covers who is eligible, what evidence matters, appeals and how bond is posted and refunded.
• Parole. For arriving travelers and others held under § 1225(b), ICE — not the judge — decides whether to release on parole, "on a case-by-case basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit" (8 U.S.C. § 1182(d)(5)(A); 8 C.F.R. § 212.5(b), which lists groups such as people with serious medical conditions and pregnant women). A written parole request with proof of identity, a sponsor's address and any medical or family hardship is the usual way to ask. See immigration bond vs. parole for the two compared.
• Release on recognizance or supervision. ICE can release a person without money bond on conditions, such as reporting to an ICE office.

Alternatives to Detention (ISAP)

ICE often releases people into its Alternatives to Detention program (ATD), run as the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP). On its ATD page — now marked "Archived" by ICE, so it describes the program as of 2024 — ICE lists three technologies: telephonic reporting, a GPS device worn on the ankle or wrist, and SmartLINK, a phone app that uses facial comparison; ICE also described home visits and virtual check-ins. The program is for adults released from DHS custody. ATD conditions can change over time, and missing an ATD check-in can lead to re-detention, so any problem with the device or the app should be reported right away and documented.

Detention centers and the detained court docket

A detained person's removal case is heard on a detained docket. Several immigration courts sit inside or next to ICE detention centers and hear mostly or only detained cases; other detained cases are heard by video from a regular court. EOIR's Immigration Court Practice Manual, chapter 8.1, states that "proceedings for detained aliens are expedited," with hearings "held either at the detention facility or at the Immigration Court, either by video or telephone conference." The same chapter makes two points families should know: immigration judges "have no jurisdiction over the location of detention and the conditions in the detention facility" — those are ICE's decisions — and DHS is responsible for bringing the detained person to every hearing. Expect less time between hearings than on a non-detained docket, so documents, witnesses and translations need to be gathered quickly.

Detained courts on our site include Adelanto, Otay Mesa and Imperial in California; Eloy and Florence in Arizona; Aurora in Colorado; Tacoma in Washington; Conroe, El Paso SPC, Pearsall and Port Isabel in Texas; Otero in New Mexico; Oakdale and LaSalle in Louisiana; Stewart in Georgia; Krome in Florida; Elizabeth in New Jersey; and Varick Street and Ulster in New York. The Batavia court, which sat inside DHS’s Buffalo (Batavia) Service Processing Center, closed at the close of business on July 24, 2026; under an EOIR notice of July 21, 2026, its pending cases were transferred to the Buffalo Immigration Court and are heard by video teleconference. Each court page lists the address, the federal circuit and the official EOIR status link; the full list of immigration courts covers the rest.

Transfers to another state

ICE decides where a person is held and can move them to another facility, including in another state, often without advance notice to the family. Under ICE's transfer directive (Directive 11022.1, 2012), when a lawyer has filed a Form G-28 ICE must tell that lawyer of the transfer, the reason and the new facility "as soon as practicable on the day of the transfer," and no later than 24 hours after it, except for special security concerns; ICE is not required to notify family members. The detainee may make one free domestic phone call on arrival at the new facility. This is a strong reason to have a G-28 on file early. The federal circuit where the person is held can change which court decisions apply, so a transfer can change the law on detention and on relief. A request to move the case to a court closer to the family is a motion to change venue, which the judge may grant for good cause (8 C.F.R. § 1003.20).

ICE check-ins: what to expect

Many people released from detention, or never detained, must report to ICE on a schedule — in person at an Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) office, by phone or through an app. People with a final removal order who have not been removed report under an order of supervision (Form I-220B) with conditions set by regulation (8 C.F.R. § 241.5); others report under an order of release on recognizance (Form I-220A) or a bond. ICE's check-in page (updated June 1, 2026) lets people schedule an appointment online with the subject ID and place of birth on their paperwork, tells them to have the paperwork they received at the border at hand before they start, and says that taking the next available appointment still meets the terms of release. An address change must be reported to ICE within five days — ICE's page says by calling 1-888-351-4024 — and a person in court must also tell the court on Form EOIR-33.

A check-in is also a place where ICE can arrest someone. Being released does not end ICE's power to re-detain: a bond or conditional parole under § 1226 can be revoked (8 U.S.C. § 1226(b)), and a person under an order of supervision can be taken into custody to carry out the removal order. ICE has published no policy about arresting people at routine check-ins, but federal courts have reviewed such arrests: in Isidro L. v. Lyons (D. Minn., January 26, 2026), a man detained "at his routine check-in" on January 21, 2026 was ordered released on a habeas petition. Whether an arrest at a check-in is lawful depends on the person's status and the circuit.

Before a check-in, especially if there is an old removal order, a pending application or a new arrest:

• have a lawyer review the file first — a motion to reopen, a stay of removal or a pending application may change the risk;
• bring the ICE notice, identification, any receipts or approval notices from USCIS, the immigration court's latest notice and a lawyer's G-28 or contact letter;
• arrange childcare, medications and a family plan in case the person is held, and give a trusted person the A-number;
• never miss a check-in without talking to a lawyer: a missed check-in can itself lead to an arrest and to the loss of a bond.

If a family member was detained at a check-in, see our immigration bond lawyer page for what to do about release.

Rights in detention

• A lawyer, but not a free one. In removal proceedings a person may be represented by counsel of their choosing "at no expense to the Government" (8 U.S.C. § 1362). The judge must advise the person of that right and give them the list of free legal service providers (8 C.F.R. § 1240.10(a)); EOIR publishes the pro bono provider list for each court.
• Consular contact. Every detained noncitizen must be told of the privilege of communicating with their country's consular officers, and for some countries ICE must notify the consulate without being asked (8 C.F.R. § 236.1(e)).
• Do not sign what you do not understand. Documents offered in custody can include voluntary departure or stipulated removal. Signing can end the case and the chance to seek relief. Ask to speak to a lawyer first.
• Detention conditions. ICE requires every facility holding its detainees to follow one of several sets of detention standards — among them the 2011 Performance-Based National Detention Standards (revised 2016) and the 2019, 2025 and 2026 National Detention Standards — listed on ICE's detention management page. Which set applies depends on the facility's contract. Problems with medical care, access to a lawyer or mail can be raised in writing with the facility and the deportation officer, and a lawyer can take them further.
• Federal court. Unlawful or prolonged detention can be challenged by a habeas corpus petition in federal district court. That is separate from the immigration court case and follows the law of the circuit where the person is held.

Detention after a final removal order

Once a removal order is final, detention is governed by 8 U.S.C. § 1231. The government has a 90-day removal period to carry out the removal, and during that period detention is required (§ 1231(a)(1)–(2)). After it, people who are not removed are usually released under supervision (§ 1231(a)(3)), but some — for example people ICE considers a risk to the community or unlikely to comply — may be held longer (§ 1231(a)(6)).

That longer detention has limits. In Zadvydas v. Davis, 533 U.S. 678 (2001), the Supreme Court read the statute to allow detention only for a period reasonably necessary to carry out removal, and treated six months as presumptively reasonable; after that, if the person shows there is no significant likelihood of removal in the reasonably foreseeable future, the government must rebut it or release them. ICE's custody reviews are in 8 C.F.R. § 241.4 and § 241.13. The Supreme Court held in Johnson v. Arteaga-Martinez, 596 U.S. 573 (2022) that § 1231(a)(6) does not itself require a bond hearing after six months. Our articles on detention after a removal order and on that decision go further.

An old order is not always the end. A motion to reopen — for example, because the person never received notice of the hearing or because conditions in the home country have changed — can be filed with a request to stop removal while it is decided; see also our stay of removal page.

Defending the removal case from detention

Detention does not change the defenses available in court, but it compresses the time to prepare them and makes gathering documents and witnesses harder. The same relief applies as for anyone in removal proceedings — for example asylum, withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture, cancellation of removal and adjustment of status. Our removal defense guide explains each stage of the case, and if the judge rules against the person, an appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals must be filed within the deadline stated there.

What families can do from outside: collect proof of identity, entry, residence and family ties (birth certificates of U.S.-citizen children, tax returns, leases, school and medical records, letters of support), police and court records for any arrest, and any immigration papers the person ever received. Carlos Maury, a former U.S. Immigration Judge, leads Carlos Maury Law; to talk about a detained family member, call (213) 769-0050. We speak Spanish.

What changed in 2025–26

• Record detention numbers, reported by independent groups. ICE's own statistics are not the source of the figures below; they are published by research and advocacy organizations, mostly from ICE data obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests. The Vera Institute of Justice reported (April 10, 2026) that the daily detention population reached a record of more than 73,400 people on a single day in mid-January 2026. The American Immigration Council (January 23, 2026, citing CBS News) put it at about 73,000, up from roughly 40,000 in January 2025. TRAC at Syracuse University reported 65,765 people held as of July 11, 2026. The groups count differently, so their numbers do not match exactly.
• Who gets a bond hearing. In Matter of Yajure Hurtado, 29 I&N Dec. 216 (BIA 2025) (September 5, 2025), the Board of Immigration Appeals held that immigration judges "lack authority to hear bond requests or to grant bond to aliens who are present in the United States without admission," treating them as held under § 1225(b)(2)(A). Most federal courts of appeals that have ruled disagree; the Fifth and Eighth Circuits side with the government. Three petitions asked the Supreme Court to decide the question (Nos. 25-1415, 26-43 and 26-104) and were distributed for the Justices' September 28, 2026 conference. On October 1, 2026 the Court granted the petition in No. 26-104, Rhoney v. Barbosa da Cunha, so it will hear and decide the question; the dockets of Nos. 25-1415 and 26-43 show no outcome yet. ICE's detainee locator also carries a court-ordered notice under a February 18, 2026 order in Maldonado Bautista v. Santacruz, No. 25-1873 (C.D. Cal.), telling certain detainees they may seek release on bond or conditional parole under § 1226(a). The bond hearings guide tracks these cases circuit by circuit.
• The Laken Riley Act. Signed January 29, 2025 (Pub. L. 119-1), it added § 1226(c)(1)(E): mandatory detention for people who entered without inspection or lack documents and who are charged with, arrested for, convicted of or admit burglary, theft, larceny, shoplifting, assault of a law enforcement officer, or a crime causing death or serious bodily injury. An arrest alone can trigger it.
• Expedited removal anywhere in the country. A DHS notice (90 FR 8139, January 24, 2025) extended expedited removal to people anywhere in the United States who cannot show two years of continuous presence. A federal district court stayed it on August 29, 2025; on June 23, 2026 the D.C. Circuit vacated that stay in Make the Road New York v. Mullin. People in expedited removal are detained under § 1225(b)(1) until a credible fear decision, so proof of more than two years' presence — leases, pay records, school records — matters from the first day.

Because these rules are moving, the law that applies to one detained person can differ by arrest date, by how they entered and by the state where they are held. Check the review date shown with this guide against the sources linked here.