WASHINGTON — According to an internal directive obtained from the immigration enforcement authorities, US immigration agents have been granted expanded authority to forcibly enter private homes without a judicial warrant. This shift represents a marked change from longstanding departmental policies designed to uphold constitutional limits during government raids and operations.
The memorandum permits agents from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to breach residential properties using force based solely on an administrative order to arrest individuals who hold final removal orders. This type of administrative order is more limited in scope compared to judicial warrants. Activist groups have raised alarms, arguing that this practice undermines Fourth Amendment protections and negates years of community advice offered to immigrant populations.
This policy change emerges in the context of a significant intensification of immigration arrests nationwide, driven by the administration's mass deportation campaign. Thousands of agents have been deployed as part of this initiative, impacting local law enforcement strategies in cities such as Minneapolis.
Historically, immigrant advocates, legal support organizations, and municipal governments have advised residents not to permit entry to immigration agents unless presented with a court-signed warrant. This guidance aligns with Supreme Court rulings generally prohibiting law enforcement from entering private dwellings without judicial authorization. The new ICE directive directly contradicts this longstanding advice amid accelerated immigration enforcement actions.
It is reported that the memorandum has not been broadly circulated within ICE. Nevertheless, its provisions serve as the basis for training newly hired agents deployed across cities and towns to implement the administration's immigration plans. New recruits and trainees are instructed to adhere to the memorandum’s guidelines rather than contradicting written training materials, according to whistleblower allegations.
The extent to which this revised protocol has been executed in the field remains unclear. On January 11, an Associated Press observation documented ICE officers in tactical gear forcibly entering the Minneapolis home of Garrison Gibson, a Liberian national subject to a final deportation order since 2023. The agents employed heavy protective equipment and held rifles in ready position during the operation.
Documents reviewed disclose that the officers held only an administrative order rather than a judicial warrant, indicating the breach of a privately owned residence without court approval. This alteration to ICE policy is anticipated to spur legal challenges and prompt renewed criticism from immigrant rights advocates and supportive state and local governments. These entities have long cautioned residents against granting entry absent judicially signed warrants, a practice that has effectively safeguarded many.
The memorandum and whistleblower complaint were shared by a congressional staff member under conditions of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the documents. The authenticity of the complaint’s contents has been verified. Signed by Todd Lyons, acting ICE director on May 12, 2025, the memo states that although the Department of Homeland Security has historically not relied solely on administrative orders to arrest immigrants at their residences, the Office of the Chief Counsel determined that the Constitution, immigration laws, and regulations do not prohibit using administrative orders for this purpose.
Details on how this determination was reached or its potential legal implications were not disclosed in the memorandum.
In response, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson communicated via email that all individuals served with administrative orders have undergone "complete due process and possess final deportation orders." The department emphasized that officials issuing such orders also determined there was probable cause for arrests, and noted that the Supreme Court and Congress have recognized the legality of administrative orders in immigration enforcement cases. The spokesperson did not clarify whether ICE agents have used these administrative orders alone to enter homes since the memorandum’s issuance or how often such actions have occurred.
Legal organizations assisting whistleblowers report that the complaint, filed by two unidentified federal employees, exposes an apparently secret and unconstitutional institutional policy directive. Recent high-profile arrest operations, many conducted at residences and businesses and captured on video, illustrate the methods employed by immigration authorities, including reliance on appropriate legal orders.
Most immigration arrests proceed under administrative orders — official internal documents authorizing arrest of specific individuals — but do not grant authority to forcibly enter private residences without consent. Only judicially signed warrants confer the right to such entry. All law enforcement actions, including those by ICE and Customs and Border Protection, must comply with the Fourth Amendment, which shields individuals in the country from unreasonable searches and seizures.
Individuals may legally refuse entry to immigration officials who possess only administrative orders, except in narrowly defined circumstances.
The memorandum authorizes ICE officers to forcibly enter residences and arrest immigrants bearing final deportation orders based solely on signed administrative orders, known as I-205 orders. The directive specifies procedural requirements: agents must announce their identity and purpose at the door, enter only between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., and allow those inside a reasonable opportunity to act lawfully. If refusal persists, agents are permitted to use necessary and reasonable force to gain access.
Although the memorandum is intended for all ICE staff, it has reportedly been disclosed only to select DHS officials. These officials have shared it with some employees under instructions to read and return the document confidentially. One whistleblower was allowed to view the document only under supervision without taking notes. Another managed to legally provide it to congressional members.
Despite being issued in May, whistleblower representatives indicate it took months to securely and legally disclose the memorandum to lawmakers and the public.
The ICE rapidly hired thousands of new deportation agents to execute the administration's mass deportation agenda, training them at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Brunswick, Georgia. An Associated Press visit in August found that ICE officials reiterated commitment to Fourth Amendment compliance during training. However, whistleblowers report that new agents are instructed to rely exclusively on administrative orders for home entries and arrests, contradicting the official written training materials of the Department of Homeland Security.
Legal experts warn the memorandum openly conflicts with Fourth Amendment protections and prior ICE declarations of authority, highlighting risks of overreach and serious consequences.