ICE Expands Airport Arrests to Travelers With Expired Visas
The arrests target travelers with expired visas and open immigration cases as ICE and TSA share passenger data under a May 2025 agreement.
- Plainclothes Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are detaining travelers at at least 15 U.S. airports, confronting them at check-in counters and arrival gates as part of an expanded partnership with the Transportation Security Administration .
- The collaboration intensified after TSA and ICE signed a 2025 agreement to share traveler data, with the White House pressuring ICE to record 2,000 daily arrests to fulfill the Trump administration's deportation agenda.
- Agents reportedly treat travelers as "easy targets" at secure locations, with "some of the arrests have occurred quietly, while others have happened as angry fellow passengers filmed the encounters," according to reports.
- Immigrants' rights advocates now urge non-citizens to avoid air travel, with attorney Jazmin Preciado, of Centro Legal de la Raza, warning that travelers must determine if "the risks are worth it" during this administration.
- These operations increasingly target individuals without criminal records, including visa overstayers and asylum seekers, marking a significant departure from prior years when authorities prioritized deporting those with documented criminal histories.
125 Articles
125 Articles
WE GOT THEM! — Trump Just Had Them Arrested at the Airport
President Trump rode into office promising to secure U.S. borders and embark on a program of mass deportations of the millions of people in the country illegally. By any measure, Trump’s policies have been wildly successful—but he’s not done yet. Federal immigration agents have arrested multiple travelers at airports across the country this month, detaining individuals at departure gates, on jet bridges, and near terminal shops as the Trump admi…
Travel alert for visa holders in US: Immigration experts say domestic flying has become risky, alarming rise in number of airport arrests
US News: Immigration experts warned against international travel for visa holders for the time being, as several instances of foreigners denied re-entry were r.
According to lawyers at airports in the USA, the focus of the ICE is now on visa offenders and asylum seekers in addition to deportation cases. An analysis.
Immigrants Urged to Avoid Air Travel Amid Rise In ICE Arrests at Bay Area Airports
At least a dozen immigrants have been detained by federal agents at Bay Area airports over the past month — many over expired visas rather than active removal orders, leading advocates to suspect ICE is accessing flight information.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 54% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
