- DHS issued mandatory call-in letters to Haitian immigrants in Springfield following the expiration of their status.
- Recipients must report to ICE field offices where some are fitted with humiliating ankle monitors.
- The administration is offering a twenty-six hundred dollar stipend for those who choose voluntary self-deportation.
The Department of Homeland Security has sent call-in letters to Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, directing some to report for in-person appointments near Cincinnati and Columbus after Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS) expired on July 27, 2026.
The notices describe an “official matter” or an “in person check-in.” They appear to target Haitians who previously held the status.
Some letters direct recipients to the ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations field office in Blue Ash, near Cincinnati. Others identify a Cincinnati address.
One notice listed 9875 Redhill Drive in Cincinnati and instructed the recipient to bring “any and all immigration documents.” The appointments can produce immediate consequences.
People who have attended the check-ins report receiving ankle monitors and immigration court dates roughly 30 days later. Others have been warned that failing to appear could result in removal proceedings.
Viles Dorsainvil, executive director of the Haitian Community Help and Support Center in Springfield, said many residents received the notices. Some were told to report on the same day they received their letters.
“if they don't go, they will be put in removal proceedings.”
Dorsainvil said he has driven more than a dozen people to appointments since July 27. He described the monitoring devices as “humiliating.”
“they are not criminals; they put ankle monitors on criminals.”
Michael Davis, senior counsel at Haynes Novick Kohn Immigration, said the process itself has been used for years. The notice asks a noncitizen to appear at an immigration office for a particular purpose.
“The G 56 call-in letter process is something that has existed for a long time.”
Springfield residents are being sent to offices near Cincinnati and Columbus
Most notices direct recipients to Blue Ash or Columbus. Blue Ash is near Cincinnati, and some letters identify the Cincinnati location at 9875 Redhill Drive.
The instructions vary. Some people have received future immigration court dates after reporting, while others have been warned about removal proceedings if they do not appear. People who attended appointments this week received mandatory court dates for early September 2026.
The notices are reaching a large Haitian community. Springfield has an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 Haitian immigrants, while approximately 350,000 people nationwide lost the protection this week.
The appointments began after the status expired on Monday, July 27, 2026. Dorsainvil’s support center has helped residents travel to the offices.
DHS is offering money and transportation for voluntary departure
The department is also promoting a voluntary departure program for eligible participants. It offers a free flight to Haiti and a $2,600 stipend through the CBP Home App to people who choose to “self-deport.”
DHS framed the policy with the phrase, “It’s closing time which means you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here.” The department used similar language in a July 27 statement:
“Temporary protected status is exactly that—TEMPORARY. For those with terminated TPS: it's closing time. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here.”
Carl Ruby, senior pastor of Central Christian Church, called the strategy a “carrot and stick approach.” He described the flight and payment as the incentive, while monitoring and legal pressure function as the deterrent.
Shannon Hughes, executive director of Ignite Peace, said the administration was “attempting to use administrative procedure to covertly disappear people without due process.”
The policy has also affected employers. DHS alerted businesses this week that Haitian documentation tied to the expired status was no longer valid, triggering layoffs in nursing homes, airports and schools across the Midwest and East Coast.
A June ruling cleared the way for the termination
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 25, 2026, in Mullin v. Doe that the administration had legal authority to terminate the status for Haiti and Syria.
Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem initially terminated the status for Haitians in November 2025. Noem is now the Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas.
The administration moved from a stated posture of no planned enforcement surge to active office check-ins after the ruling and the July expiration. Liana Castano, DHS assistant director for field operations, said earlier in 2026 that there was no “planned specific surge,” while ICE was conducting “daily enforcement activities” across Springfield and South Florida.
Markwayne Mullin became the ninth Secretary of DHS on March 24, 2026. He attended the National Governors Association meeting on August 1, 2026, where he emphasized “state-federal coordination” on immigration.
David Venturella assumed the role of Acting Director of ICE on June 1, 2026. A DHS spokesperson said in a February 20, 2025 statement that the administration was restoring the system’s temporary purpose.
“We are returning integrity to the TPS system, which has been abused and exploited by illegal aliens for decades. President Trump and Secretary Mullin are returning TPS to its original status: temporary.”
Faith leaders gathered outside the Blue Ash office
Faith leaders and the Miami Valley Immigration Coalition held a vigil outside the ICE office in Blue Ash at 7:00 AM on August 2, 2026. They protested the reporting requirements and the treatment of people who attended them.
Residents who appeared this week received court dates for early September 2026. The Springfield support center continues helping people reach appointments in the Cincinnati and Columbus areas.
