Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been entering homes without judicial warrants since last summer, according to current and former administration officials. An internal memo dated May 12, 2025, later made public by whistleblowers, instructed ICE officers that they could rely on administrative warrants to enter homes when there was an order to remove someone from the country.
Administrative warrants, which are signed by ICE field office officials, allow officers to make arrests at a lower legal standard than judicial warrants, which are required for most home entries. The policy has raised legal and civil liberties concerns, with critics arguing it violates the Fourth Amendment’s protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.
The officials said the May memo followed a March 2025 opinion from the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the General Counsel. Acting ICE deputy director Charlie Wall was tasked with implementing the policy and reportedly briefed officers in Los Angeles ahead of an enforcement operation in June, which sparked protests across the city. The policy is now reportedly referenced in training materials.
DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin confirmed that administrative warrants are being used but did not provide details on the number of home entries. She said the agency ensures that anyone subject to such enforcement has already had “full due process.”
The memo, issued by then-acting ICE Director Todd Lyons, acknowledged that relying solely on administrative warrants to detain people in their homes represents a shift from past practices. It specifies that the policy applies to individuals with final removal orders from immigration judges, the Board of Immigration Appeals, or U.S. district or magistrate courts. Officers are instructed to allow time for compliance, generally avoid entering homes before 6 a.m. or after 10 p.m., and to use only “necessary and reasonable” force when making an entry.
The memo was shared with Sen. Richard Blumenthal by whistleblowers earlier this week. ICE operations using this policy have intensified as the agency continues efforts to increase deportations across the United States.
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