Does ICE Need a Warrant? Questions Loom Over Trump’s Deportation Raids

The Biden administration’s approach to immigration enforcement has been quickly reversed by President Donald Trump, leading to mass deportation operations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers across major U.S. cities. The sweeping enforcement actions, conducted in states like Texas, California, and Illinois, have renewed legal questions about whether ICE requires a warrant to arrest undocumented immigrants inside homes or workplaces.

Why It Matters

ICE’s use of administrative warrants versus judicial warrants has long been a contentious issue. Under the Trump administration’s directives, ICE has significantly expanded its enforcement, arresting thousands of individuals in the first weeks since Trump’s return to office. Advocates and legal experts argue that while administrative warrants allow ICE to detain individuals, they do not grant the authority to forcibly enter private residences without judicial approval.

According to KERA News, “An ICE warrant, also known as an administrative warrant, allows an agent to arrest the person for which the warrant is issued. But it doesn’t allow an agent to demand entry into someone’s home or a private space.” Immigration attorneys have urged individuals to understand their Fourth Amendment rights when confronted by ICE agents at their doors.

Does ICE Need a Warrant to Make an Arrest?

Under current U.S. law, an ICE agent can arrest an undocumented person found in public spaces without a judicial warrant. However, entering a home requires either consent from the occupant or a warrant signed by a judge. KERA News cited Dallas immigration attorney Belinda Arroyo, who stated, “If somebody shows up at your home, you have the right to ask, ‘Where is your warrant? And not your administrative warrant, but your judicial warrant to enter my home.'”

How are ICE Warrants Different From Other Warrants?

Despite these legal constraints, the Trump administration has expanded the number of locations where ICE can operate, eliminating previous limitations on enforcement at “sensitive locations” like churches and schools. NBC News reported that DHS justified the move, stating, “Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest.”

Do You Have to Open the Door for ICE?

Immigrant rights groups and legal experts have raised alarms about the broad scope of ICE’s operations, which they argue are leading to widespread fear within communities. Gina Amato Lough, a California-based director attorney for the Immigrants’ Rights Project, told BBC News, “I haven’t seen anything remotely like this, and it’s just the first few days of the presidency.” She described the strategy as one of “shock and awe,” designed to deter migrants from staying in the U.S.

What is ICE Not Allowed to Do?

ICE’s powers differ significantly from those of traditional law enforcement agencies like local police departments. Unlike police officers, ICE agents do not require probable cause to initiate an immigration stop and can detain individuals based on civil immigration violations rather than criminal offenses. However, ICE does not have the same broad authority as police when it comes to conducting searches and arrests.

Legal experts emphasize that ICE cannot forcibly enter a home without a judicial warrant. Additionally, ICE agents were not permitted to arrest individuals in certain protected locations, such as schools and hospitals, under previous DHS guidelines—though these protections have been rolled back by the Trump administration.

Unlike police officers who need a criminal warrant signed by a judge to enter a home, ICE relies primarily on administrative warrants, which do not carry the same legal weight. These administrative warrants are issued by ICE officials rather than judges. Furthermore, ICE does not have the authority to conduct general law enforcement activities unrelated to immigration violations, such as investigating non-immigration crimes or responding to emergency sit

How Long Can ICE Hold You in Jail?

ICE can hold individuals in detention for an indefinite period, but there are legal limits on how long detainees can be held without review. According to federal regulations, ICE is generally required to make a custody determination within 48 hours of an individual’s arrest. However, some detainees may remain in ICE custody for weeks or even months while awaiting immigration court hearings or deportation proceedings.

If an individual is subject to mandatory detention due to certain criminal convictions, they may be held without bond until their case is resolved. For those eligible for bond, an immigration judge can set a release amount, allowing them to be freed while their case is pending.

In cases where a person is ordered deported, ICE typically has 90 days to carry out the removal. If deportation is not completed within that timeframe, the detainee may be eligible for release under supervision, unless ICE can demonstrate that they are a flight risk or a danger to the community.

How Many Immigrants Have Been Deported by ICE Since Trump Took Office?

The first month of 2025 has seen a dramatic increase in deportations as part of the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement policies. According to ICE data, more than 3,500 undocumented migrants have been arrested since Trump returned to office, with over 1,000 arrests occurring on a single day.

A source familiar with the arrests told NBC News that they targeted criminals, but could not say whether migrants without criminal convictions were arrested as “collateral arrests.”

What People Are Saying

In contrast, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the administration’s approach, saying, “They illegally broke our nation’s laws, and, therefore, are criminals as far as this administration goes.” Her remarks have fueled criticism that the administration is blurring the lines between civil immigration violations and criminal offenses.

President Donald Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, has said, “Under Biden, we had a 3,500% increase in people on terrorist watch lists. No, we’re saving this nation. We make America safe again. So they need to get out of the way because we’re coming. We’re going to do it. They’re not going to stop us.”

Others have spoken out publicly about the raids.

At a Newark City Hall meeting, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said, “They threaten democracy, they threaten us individually, they say they’re going to arrest us if we stand up and uphold these rights. I’m not afraid of that, and if he thinks we’re gonna just go to jail quietly, he’s got another thing coming.”

What’s Next

As legal experts and immigrant communities brace for further operations, the question of whether ICE can lawfully conduct arrests without judicial warrants will likely remain at the forefront of the immigration debate. Activists and legal organizations continue to push for legal clarity and protections for undocumented individuals in the face of intensified enforcement measures.