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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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Federal immigration agents are being directed to enter people's homes and make arrests without warrants signed by a judge, an internal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) memo shows.
According to an internal ICE memorandum obtained by the Associated Press, the agency now authorizes officers to use administrative warrants—documents issued within the Department of Homeland Security—to force entry into private residences to arrest individuals with final orders of removal. The memo said officers should knock and identify themselves initially, but may use a "reasonable amount of force" to gain entry if refused.
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https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26499371-dhs-ice-memo-1-21-26/
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Why It Matters
Immigrant advocates and local officials have urged people not to let immigration agents into their homes unless presented with a judge-signed warrant, reflecting Supreme Court rulings that generally bar law enforcement from entering private residences without judicial approval. ICE has faced growing scrutiny for warrantless arrests, forcibly entering homes and using heavy-handed tactics, with critics warning that the agency's aggressive approach risks violating civil liberties. These concerns have intensified as the Trump administration advances a large-scale deportation policy, raising questions about the balance between immigration enforcement and constitutional protections.
What To Know
Traditionally, federal enforcement operations have followed guidance tied to the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which generally requires law enforcement to obtain a warrant signed by a judge before entering a home.
The Associated Press received the memo and whistleblower complaint from a congressional official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive documents.
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The memo, dated May 12, 2025, and signed by Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons, said immigration law and the Constitution did not prohibit the use of administrative warrants to enter residences for arrests when a person had a final removal order. The memo said officers could conduct such entries between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. and instructed them to provide the occupants a "reasonable chance to act lawfully" before using force.
"Should the alien refuse admittance, ICE officers and agents should use only a necessary and reasonable amount of force to enter the alien's residence, following proper notification of the officer's or agent's authority and intent to enter," the memo said.
Tricia McLaughlin, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, told the Associated Press in an emailed statement that individuals served with an administrative warrant have already received "full due process and a final order of removal." She added that the officers issuing these warrants have determined there is probable cause for the person's arrest. McLaughlin noted that the Supreme Court and Congress had "recognized the propriety of administrative warrants in cases of immigration enforcement," without providing further details.
The policy change has already played out in the field. In Minneapolis earlier this month, with AP reporting that ICE agents broke through a front door and arrested a man using only an administrative warrant, without a judge's signature.
Critics say the shift raises serious constitutional questions and is likely to face legal challenges.
Click here to read the full the memo.
What People Are Saying
FWD.us President Todd Schulte said in a statement shared with Newsweek: "A secret ICE memo released by a whistleblower revealed a flagrantly illegal, unconstitutional policy that directs ICE agents to enter private homes without a judicial warrant. This is a mass violation of basic due process, privacy and constitutional rights by law enforcement."
Lindsay Nash, a law professor at Yeshiva University's Cardozo School of Law in New York, told the Associated Press: "[There's an] enormous potential for overreach, for mistakes and we've seen that those can happen with very, very serious consequences."
Orin Kerr, a law professor at Stanford Law School, wrote on X: "This DHS memorandum says that the DHS General Counsel's office has adopted a new position that the Fourth Amendment allows entry into the home to make an arrest just based on an administrative warrant. I would like to see that argument."
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