Few Somalis in Minnesota Face Final Deportation Orders, Experts Say

(MINNESOTA) Federal immigration agents are preparing an enforcement operation in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area that targets Somali immigrants with final orders of deportation, raising fresh fear in a community that is mostly made up of U.S. citizens. Homeland Security has not released a timeline or detailed numbers, but officials and advocates say hundreds of people across Minnesota could receive knocks on their doors.

Who is actually at risk

At the same time, new data and local voices show that only a small slice of Somalis in Minnesota face any real risk of removal.

• Minnesota has the nation’s largest Somali community, with roughly 80,000 people.
• About 95 percent of that community are U.S. citizens, according to Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

“People hear about raids and deportations and they think the whole Somali community is at risk,” Hussein said. “The reality is that about 50 percent of our community was born here, and most others are green card holders or U.S. citizens. Very few people actually have final orders of deportation.”

Even so, news of planned operations has sent a chill through Somali neighborhoods in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Community leaders say rumors spread quickly on WhatsApp and in mosques, with some people afraid to leave their homes for work or school.

Government response and available data

The Department of Homeland Security has declined to confirm specific raids or targets. Tricia McLaughlin, a Homeland Security spokesperson, said the agency does not discuss “future or potential operations,” a standard policy for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Court records and immigration data do show that only a small share of Somalis living in Minnesota have final orders of deportation. Those orders come after an immigration judge has ruled that a person must leave the United States, and all appeals have ended or expired.

• Precise numbers for Somalis with final removal orders in Minnesota are not public.
• Federal briefings reviewed by local advocates say “hundreds of people are expected to be targeted” in the Twin Cities operation, but the government has not specified how many are Somali nationals.

According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, the lack of public data around these operations is typical of recent enforcement campaigns. Officials often release only broad tallies after raids take place, leaving immigrant communities to brace for the worst without knowing who is actually at risk.

Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Somali cases

For Somalis in Minnesota, uncertainty overlays already complicated immigration rules tied to conflict and instability in Somalia.

• The United States first gave Somalia a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation in the 1990s, recognizing that people could face serious harm if they returned.
• TPS lets eligible Somali nationals live and work in the United States for set periods while conditions at home remain dangerous.
• A report prepared for Congress in August 2025 found that only 705 Somalis nationwide were covered by TPS — a tiny figure that highlights how few people fall into the narrow group with temporary status or no status at all.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services page for Somalia’s TPS designation, available The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services page for Somalia’s TPS designation, available here, spells out who can apply and when. But most Somalis in Minnesota do not need TPS because they already hold citizenship or permanent residency.

Mixed-status households and human impacts

The distinction between who is at risk and who is not matters because families often have mixed immigration statuses under one roof.

• Citizen children, permanent residents, and relatives with older immigration cases can live in the same household.
• An individual who once missed a court hearing may now have a final order, while family members remain citizens or lawful residents.

Hodan Abdi, a 32-year-old mother in St. Paul, described the fear many families feel:

“My husband had an old asylum case that was denied, and we don’t know if he has a final order now. My kids are citizens. Where do they go if he is taken?”

Immigration lawyers say stories like Abdi’s are common in Somali communities, even though the actual number of people with final orders of deportation is small. Many orders date back years, to a time when Somalis arrived as refugees with little legal help.

What advocates recommend

Advocates urge anyone who thinks they might have an old case to speak with a qualified attorney or accredited representative. Some people may be able to reopen their cases if they never received proper notice of a hearing or if conditions in Somalia have changed in a way that affects their claims.

Local groups are taking practical steps:

• Holding know-your-rights sessions.
• Advising people to keep copies of U.S. passports, naturalization papers, or green cards within reach.
• Emphasizing legal rights during encounters with agents.

“If agents come, you have the right to see a warrant and to remain silent,” Hussein said. “And for citizens, it’s important to show proof right away so they are not caught up by mistake.”

Political and law-enforcement perspectives

State and local officials have pressed the Biden administration to limit enforcement in cases where Somalis have strong ties to Minnesota and pose no public safety risk. They argue that removing people to an unstable country breaks families apart without making communities safer.

Federal authorities respond that they are enforcing laws enacted by Congress. They note:

• Immigration judges issue final orders of deportation only after hearing evidence and allowing people to present their cases.
• Once orders are final, ICE aims to remove people unless relief is granted or the agency exercises discretion to delay.

Community context and final note

What sets the current operation apart is its focus on a community that is deeply rooted in Minnesota life.

• Somali-owned shops, restaurants, and mosques stretch from the Cedar-Riverside area of Minneapolis to suburbs like Bloomington and St. Louis Park.
• Most customers and workers in those businesses have no reason to fear arrest, yet they share the stress that comes whenever Somalis hear about final orders of deportation and new roundups.

Hussein summarized the community message simply: almost all Somalis here are citizens or residents, and the small at-risk group should not define them.