Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE
This resource page combines resources for attorneys representing clients before ICE. For information about why AILA is calling for the reduction and phasing out of immigration detention, please see our Featured Issue Page: Immigration Detention and Alternatives to Detention.
Quick Links
- Seeking Stays of Removal
- AILA Practice Pointers and Alerts (continually updated)
- Practice Advisory: Representing Detained Clients in the Virtual Landscape
- Practice Pointer: How to Locate Clients Apprehended by ICE
- Practice Pointer: Preparing for an Order of Supervision Appointment with ICE-ERO
- AILA ICE Liaison Agenda and Meeting Minutes
Communicating with OPLA, ERO, and CROs
The Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) includes 1300 attorneys who represent the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in immigration removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). OPLA litigates all removal cases as well as provides legal counsel to ICE personnel. At present, there are 25 field locations throughout the United States.
Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) manages all aspects of immigration enforcement from arrest, detention, and removal. ERO has 24 field office locations. ERO also manages an “alternative to detention” program that relies almost exclusively on the “Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP)” to monitor individuals in removal proceedings.
Since 2016, ICE has had an Office of Partnership and Engagement (formerly Office of Community Engagement) to be a link between the agency and stakeholders. As part of this office, Community Relations Officers (CROS) are assigned to every field office to work with local stakeholders such as attorneys and nonprofit organizations.
*Headquarters does not provide direct contact numbers or emails for individual employees.* (AILA Liaison Meeting with ICE on April 26, 2023)(AILA Doc. No. 23033004). However, attorneys can contact Chapter Local ICE Liaisons as they may have this information provided to them via local liaison engagement.
- DHS/ICE/OPLA Chief Counsel Contact Information [last updated in 2024, this list no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- Contact Information for Local OPLA Offices [last updated in 2024, this information no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- ERO Field Offices Contact Information*
- OPE Community Relations Officers
- ICE Check-In Scheduling Website
- ICE Online Change of Address Website
Latest on Enforcement Priorities & Prosecutorial Discretion
Executive Order 14159 (90 FR 8443, 1/29/25) directs DHS to set priorities that protect the public safety and national security interests of the American people, including by ensuring the successful enforcement of final orders of removal, enforcement of the INA and other Federal laws related to the illegal entry and unlawful presence of [noncitizens] in the United States and the enforcement of the purposes of this order. Given the January 25, 2025, confirmation of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, a memorandum detailing enforcement priorities may be issued in the coming weeks.
An unpublished ICE memo from acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello entitled “Interim Guidance: Civil Immigration Enforcement Actions in or near Courthouses” makes reference to targeted noncitizens and includes:
- National security or public safety threats;
- Those with criminal convictions;
- Gang members;
- Those who have been ordered removed from the United States but have failed to depart; and/or
- Those who have re-entered the country illegally after being removed.
Procedures and email inboxes created under the Biden Administration to request Prosecutorial Discretion no longer appear on the ICE website. AILA members are encouraged to review current DOJ regulations entitled “Efficient Case and Docket Management in Immigration Proceedings” for alternative basis for seeking termination or administrative closure.
Access to Counsel
- ERO eFile:
- An online system developed to electronically file G-28s with ERO. Attorneys and accredited representatives may register for ERO eFile accounts and may also sponsor law students and law graduates who work under their supervision. See AILA’s practice alert (AILA Doc. No. 24051506) for more information.
- ICE Attorney Information and Resources Page
- AILA Practice Alert: Updates to the ICE Attorney Information and Resource Page
Filing Administrative Complaints on Behalf of Detained and Formerly Detained Clients
- Online Intake Form for the Detention Ombudsman (myOIDO)
- Available for complaints for issues in ICE and CBP Custody nationwide, including to submit complaints about access to counsel problems on behalf of currently or previously detained clients.
- Online Complaint Form for DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL)
- Oversight of Immigration Detention: An Overview - May 16, 2022
(provides a list of agencies with which attorneys may file administrative complaints of detention center violations) - Immigration Judge Complaint Toolkit – August 31, 2022
- Practice Alert: Template for CRCL Complaint Regarding Failures to Provide Language Access – July 16, 2021
Selected ICE Policies and Current Status
For comprehensive comparison of current and prior ICE policies, please review the “Immigration Policy Tracker (IPTP).” The IPTP is a project of Professor Lucas Guttentag working with teams of Stanford and Yale law students and leading national immigration experts.
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Browse the Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE collection
Update on Third Country Removals – Nationwide Class Certified and Preliminary Injunction Issued
Today, a federal court certified this nationwide class related to third-country removals in DVD v. DHS, litigated by NILA, NWIRP, and HRF.
EOIR Issues Policy Memo Rescinding and Canceling Director’s Memo on Administrative Closure
On 4/18/25, EOIR Acting Director Sirce Owen issued Policy Memorandum (PM) 25-29 rescinding and canceling the 11/22/21 Director’s Memorandum (DM) 22-03, “Administrative Closure,” which provided guidance on the use of administrative closure by EOIR adjudicators.
EOIR Publishes IFR on Reducing the Size of the BIA
EOIR published an interim final rule (IFR) with request for comments amending DOJ regulations relating to the organization of the BIA by reducing the size of the Board to 15 members. The IFR is effective as of 4/14/25, and comments are due by 5/14/25. (90 FR 15525, 4/14/25)
Practice Alert: EOIR Memo on Pretermission of Legally Insufficient Asylum Applications
On April 11, 2025, EOIR published a memo to allow immigration judges to “pretermit” or dismiss legally insufficient asylum applications without a hearing.
EOIR Actively Recruiting and Hiring Attorney Positions
EOIR is actively recruiting and hiring for attorney positions, including an Immigration Judge position (closing on 4/24/25).
New York Times: Pressuring Migrants to 'Self-Deport,' White House Moves to Cancel Social Security Numbers
The Trump Administration has revoked the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of immigrants allowed into the country under the Biden Administration. Now, to pressure some of those immigrants and others who had legal status to "self-deport," it is canceling the SSNs they lawfully obtained.
BIA Issues Ruling on PSG Analysis Based on “Former” Status
The BIA held that, where a particular social group (PSG) is defined by “former” status, IJs must ensure the persecutor’s conduct was based on a desire to overcome or animus toward respondent’s membership in a group defined by that status. Matter of O–A–R–G–, et al., 29 I&N Dec. 30 (BIA 2025)
EOIR Issues Policy Memo on Pretermission of Legally Insufficient Asylum Applications
On 4/11/25, EOIR Acting Director Sirce Owen issued Policy Memorandum (PM) 25-28 to provide guidance on the legal standards related to the pretermission of a legally insufficient application for asylum.
CA3 Finds IJ Did Not Abuse His Discretion in Denying Petitioner’s Asylum Application in First Instance and Upon Reconsideration
The court held that the IJ did not act arbitrarily or capriciously in finding that petitioner was not entitled to asylum in the first instance, and that the IJ reconsidered the discretionary denial of asylum in accordance with 8 CFR §1208.16(e) and caselaw. (Thankarasa v. Att’y Gen., 4/10/25)
CA4 Holds That Petitioner’s Conviction for Petit Larceny in Virginia Was a CIMT
The court held that the petitioner’s conviction for petit larceny in violation of Virginia Code §18.2-96 categorically qualified as a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT), rendering the petitioner ineligible for cancellation of removal. (Chavez v. Bondi, 4/10/25)
DHS to Begin Screening Noncitizens’ Social Media Activity for Antisemitism
USCIS announced that it will begin considering noncitizens’ antisemitic activity on social media and the physical harassment of Jewish individuals as grounds for denying immigration benefit requests. The guidance is effective immediately.
District Court TRO Blocks Deportations of Alleged Venezuelan Gang Members under AEA
A Texas federal district court temporarily enjoined the Trump Administration from deporting alleged members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang under the Alien Enemies Act (AEA). (J.A.V. et al. v. Trump et al., 4/9/25)
DHS Announces Relaunch of Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement (VOICE) Office
At a press conference on 4/9/25, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons, and Deputy Director Madison Sheahan announced the relaunch of the Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement (VOICE) Office, which will assist victims of crimes committed by undocumented foreign nationals.
CA1 Holds That BIA Failed to Consider Findings from Psychological Report in Denying Cancellation of Removal
The court held that the BIA erred by failing to consider findings in a psychological report assessing the mental health status of petitioners’ child in determining that petitioners did not satisfy the “exceptional and extremely unusual” hardship standard. (Blanco Contreras v. Bondi, 4/9/25)
BIA Holds That 30-Day Appeal Filing Period Is Calculated from Date of IJ’s Oral Decision
The BIA held that when an IJ issues an oral decision, the 30-day appeal filing period is calculated from the date the decision is rendered and is unaffected by the subsequent mailing of a memorandum summarizing the oral decision. Matter of Iskandarani, 29 I&N Dec. 26 (BIA 2025)
CBP’s Carrier Liaison Program Issues Bulletin on “Alien Removals”
CBP’s Carrier Liaison Program issued a bulletin on “alien removals” for carriers transporting passengers under either the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) or the Guam - Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Visa Waiver Program (G-CMNI VWP).
Call for Examples: Student Visa Revocations & Terminations
AILA is looking for specific examples of individuals who have had their student visa's revoked and SEVIS records terminated. Please complete the survey below. Your response will be collected and reviewed by AILA.
Supreme Court Allows Removal of Venezuelans under the Alien Enemies Act
In a case challenging the transfer of Venezuelan immigrants to an El Salvador prison under the Alien Enemies Act, the Supreme Court vacated the lower court’s orders, allowing the government’s actions to proceed. (Trump v. J.G.G., 4/7/25)
Executive Order on Making District of Columbia “Safe and Beautiful”
On 3/27/25, President Trump issued Executive Order (EO) 14252 which, among other things, establishes a task force to direct maximum enforcement of federal immigration law in the Washington, D.C., area and to monitor D.C.’s sanctuary city status. (90 FR 14559, 4/3/25)
CA1 Remands After Finding BIA May Have Endorsed IJ’s Use of Legally Erroneous “Ocular Visibility” Test
The court found that the BIA may have endorsed the IJ’s use of a legally erroneous “ocular visibility” test in evaluating whether the petitioner’s proposed particular social group (PSG) was socially distinct within Salvadoran society. (Alvarez Mendoza v. Bondi, 3/31/25)
ICE to Reopen Detention Center at Glades County Jail in Florida
ICE announced that it is reinstating the intergovernmental service agreement with the Glades County Board of County Commissioners to house ICE detainees at the Glades County Jail in Moore Haven, Florida. The agreement reestablishes the detention center and creates up to 500 additional beds.
Senators and Representatives Urge AG to Reverse Course on Firings of IJs
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) led 66 House and Senate Democrats in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi regarding EOIR's firings of immigration judges (IJs) and indications of plans to fire even more as immigration courts currently face a staggering backlog of cases.
DHS Notice Extending Finding of Mass Influx of Aliens
DHS notice stating that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem is extending the Acting Secretary of DHS’s 1/23/25 “Finding of Mass Influx of Aliens.” The finding will expire in 180 days. (90 FR 13622, 3/25/25
CA5 Finds BIA Did Not Act Ultra Vires When Temporary BIA Member Ordered Petitioner’s Removal
On remand from the U.S. Supreme Court, the court held that the petitioner’s ultra vires claim failed because he could not establish a statutory violation, and that even if a statutory violation were not required, he also failed to show a regulatory violation. (Ayala Chapa v. Bondi, 3/24/25)
EOIR Issues Memo Reinstating Prior Guidance on Use of Status Dockets in Immigration Court Proceedings
EOIR Acting Director Sirce Owen issued Policy Memorandum (PM) 25-27 rescinding and canceling the 10/4/22 Director’s Memorandum (DM) 23-01 and reinstating the 8/16/19 PM 19-13 on the use of status dockets in immigration proceedings.