- US authorities have started arresting some foreigners with expired visas at airports
- ICE expanded enforcement to migrants with pending immigration cases
- Lawyers warn the policy is affecting thousands of legal applicants
The United States has intensified its immigration enforcement by detaining foreign nationals with expired visas at airports nationwide, broadening a policy that previously focused mainly on individuals with outstanding deportation orders.
According to a report by The New York Times, Eko Hot Blog gathered that officers of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have recently carried out arrests at check-in counters, boarding gates and arrival terminals in at least 15 airports across the country.
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Those reportedly affected include spouses of U.S. citizens, skilled workers awaiting visa renewals, former exchange programme participants and other migrants with pending immigration applications.
The report said the latest enforcement action reflects an expansion of the existing partnership between the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and ICE.
Previously, the programme primarily targeted individuals with final deportation orders. However, internal documents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, cited by the newspaper, indicate that it now also includes travellers whose visas have expired, even if they have applications pending to remain in the country legally.
Each year, hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals overstay their visas in the United States. Many continue to live and work legally while awaiting decisions on visa extensions, green card applications or other immigration benefits.
In the past, such individuals were generally not prioritised for removal unless they had committed criminal offences.
Defending the policy, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said the administration remained committed to enforcing immigration laws.
“This administration is working diligently to ensure that aliens in our country illegally can no longer fly unless it is out of our country to self-deport,” the spokesperson said.
The department, however, did not confirm whether the airport enforcement programme had officially been expanded.
The report also stated that the White House has directed ICE to increase immigration enforcement, with Homeland Security officials reportedly setting a target of about 2,000 arrests each day.
Immigration lawyers told The New York Times that the policy has affected clients from more than a dozen countries, including people with pending asylum requests, work visa renewals and applications for permanent residency through marriage.
Among the reported cases is 27-year-old Ecuadorian national Chantal Morales Rojas, a former au pair who was detained while preparing to board a domestic flight despite having a pending immigration application and valid work authorisation.
Another case involved a Ugandan woman living with sickle cell anaemia who was reportedly arrested even though her asylum application was still under consideration.
Immigration lawyer Charles Kuck described the development as unprecedented, saying he had never encountered similar enforcement in nearly four decades of practice.
He said the arrests appeared to be affecting numerous immigrants with unresolved legal status despite having pending applications.
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