Hundreds of DHS Staff Reassigned to Border Security and Immigration

Hundreds of employees across the Department of Homeland Security are being told to pack up their desks and report to border and immigration units as early as this fall, marking one of the widest workforce shifts inside the United States federal system since the years after 9/11. Staff from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and the U.S. Coast Guard are receiving notices moving them into roles at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the Federal Protective Service (FPS).

The move reflects a core policy of President Trump’s team: put more people on the line to carry out immigration enforcement, speed deportations, and tighten border security. Internal directives describe the effort as urgent and ongoing. While the exact headcount remains withheld, multiple officials confirm that “hundreds” of DHS personnel are in the current wave, on top of thousands of federal workers already pulled toward immigration duties since the administration renewed this push.

The MDR process and employee timelines

Officials describe the changes through Management-Directed Reassignment (MDR) notices. Key procedural facts:

• Employees typically have one week to respond to an MDR.
• If accepted, most staff have 60 days to relocate.
• Some cases receive limited flexibility for family, health, or mission needs.
• If declined, employees can face removal from federal service.

For staff who built careers around cyber defense, disaster response, transportation security, or maritime safety, the sudden shift into immigration enforcement roles can be jarring. Several employees say they support secure borders but worry about the near-term cost to other core missions—especially during active hurricane season, persistent ransomware and phishing campaigns, and global maritime risks.

Scale and cross-government impact

According to the most complete reporting available, at least 6,700 federal workers have been redirected toward immigration enforcement since the current policy campaign began. Notable breakdowns include:

• About 2,000 Department of Justice (DOJ) agents detailed to support DHS activities (from the FBI, DEA, ATF, and U.S. Marshals).
• The FBI accounts for 45% of that total—roughly 6.6% of its workforce— with major field offices such as New York nearing 8% while the reassignment orders remain in force.
• At least 250 IRS agents now handling immigration-related investigations and asset seizures.

The policy also pulls in military support and local police partnerships for coordinated operations along the border and inside the country.

Operational concerns at CISA and FEMA

CISA and FEMA face some of the most sensitive operational trade-offs:

• CISA’s cyber teams (including Capacity Building and Stakeholder Engagement) help federal, state, and private networks prepare for and block attacks. Reassigning trained cyber responders to ICE, CBP, or FPS has raised alarm among career officials as ransomware, supply chain malware, and email-based exploits continue to affect government systems.
• FEMA has seen reassignments overlap with the height of hurricane season, when agency workload can spike for months. Managers say surge staffing and mutual aid help, but admit the timing has been difficult. Many reassigned FEMA employees remain in their new roles.

Policy direction and organizational shifts

The administration’s message is clear: immigration enforcement is the priority, and every part of the federal system should support it. Tens of billions of dollars have been directed to ICE, CBP, and related units to expand detention capacity, speed removals, and build or reinforce physical barriers.

A major organizational change affects U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Historically separated from enforcement since 2002 to build public trust, USCIS has been given expanded authority to make arrests, carry firearms, and execute warrants. This blurs the line between adjudication and enforcement and could:

• Scare off eligible applicants
• Drag out case timelines
• Increase backlogs for families, employers, and students

Lawyers and advocates warn this change may chill filings that USCIS previously handled as a benefits-focused agency.

Implementation, trade-offs, and field conditions

On-the-ground effects of reassignments:

• Extra manpower helps ICE and CBP with detention transport, document processing, and field support—reducing overtime for overstretched agents.
• DOJ and IRS personnel have joined task forces in metro areas to support asset tracing and case preparation.
• CISA and FPS staff in border districts handle facility security and infrastructure assessments, freeing ICE/CBP officers for field work.
• Coast Guard presence helps logistics and interagency planning in remote areas.

Clear costs and operational gaps:

• Fewer immediate cyber responders at CISA means slower response to live breaches and fewer exercises with partners (school districts, hospitals, utilities).
• FEMA lost seasoned emergency planners and HR specialists who guide deployments during back-to-back disasters.
• TSA worries about staffing gaps at busy airports during peak travel.
• Coast Guard leaders warn about risks to maritime patrols and port security if experienced crews move inland.

USCIS’s expanded role magnifies community concerns: families may avoid filing benefits, employers fear slower hiring, and students worry about routine filings triggering enforcement attention. Agency leaders say the intent is coordination, not deterrence, and point to training for USCIS officers taking on enforcement tasks.

Financial and enforcement trade-offs

Pulling investigators and auditors from the IRS and DOJ leads to trade-offs:

• Fewer complex tax cases—often responsible for large penalties and recovered revenue—may be pursued.
• DOJ agents diverted from fraud, cybercrime, and public corruption probes slow progress on long-term investigations.
• Former prosecutors note that once momentum is lost, complicated cases rarely recover their previous pace.

These moves can deliver more capacity at the border in the short term but carry downstream fiscal and public-safety costs.

Legislative outlook and staffing pipeline

Congress passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which includes funding for 10,000 new ICE agents. In theory, that could allow reassigned employees to return to original roles once recruiting and training finish. Practical constraints:

• ICE has historically struggled to hire at that scale.
• Background checks, academy seats, and field training take time—many months before new agents reach full duty.

Until new agents are trained, reassignments remain a central tool to meet daily immigration enforcement demand.

Flexibility and recall conditions

Assignments are not fixed and can flex when crises occur:

• A major cyber incident could prompt CISA to recall key staff supporting ICE/CBP/FPS.
• A severe storm season could prompt FEMA to recall specialists.
• Some FBI personnel have already been shifted back to counterterrorism when threat levels changed.

Officials say orders can be adjusted as crises arise, but the core direction is to keep immigration enforcement at the top of priorities unless another emergency forces a pivot.

Practical advice for DHS employees

If you receive an MDR, recommended steps:

1. Read the notice carefully and note the one-week decision deadline.
2. Meet with HR and your union quickly to confirm relocation benefits, hardship options, and medical accommodations.
3. Document caregiving or health needs that may justify flexibility.
4. Ask whether the new role requires different certifications and request training schedules and equipment early.
5. Keep records of all communications and filings related to the reassignment.

Supervisors say onboarding classes are staged to get reassigned staff productive quickly. Ask how performance evaluation and time on detail will count toward promotions or specialized credentials.

Community and stakeholder impacts

For communities and organizations that rely on federal partners:

• Border districts will see more personnel supporting immigration enforcement, which can speed processing and reduce bottlenecks.
• Other regions may experience lighter coverage on cyber defense, disaster planning, tax enforcement, and complex criminal cases.
• Police chiefs, school superintendents, and hospital administrators should expect fewer federal-led cyber drills and emergency planning sessions and may need to seek state or private support temporarily.

Legal advocacy and public guidance

Legal advocates caution that USCIS’s blending with enforcement could deter families from filing. Congress created the 2002 split to ensure confidence in benefits adjudication; narrowing that separation risks chilling filings.

Practical guidance for applicants:

• Continue filing if eligible; eligibility has not changed because of personnel shifts.
• Gather complete records and respond promptly to evidence requests.
• Track application receipts closely.
• Consult a qualified attorney or accredited representative for complex questions.
• Stay informed via official sources, including the Department of Homeland Security: https://www.dhs.gov.

DOJ, IRS, and Coast Guard mitigation steps

Agencies are attempting to preserve core expertise while supporting immigration needs:

• Some DOJ field offices rotate agents between immigration and non-immigration squads.
• Short, focused details let agents return to long-running cases before key deadlines.
• IRS managers triage caseloads to protect high-dollar audits and fraud cases.
• Coast Guard leaders use targeted backfills and adjusted patrol patterns to limit maritime blind spots.

These steps reduce risk but cannot fully replace the depth lost when veteran staff leave their home missions.

Human costs and workforce strain

Employees face significant personal strain:

• Relocating in 60 days is hard for families with school-aged children or spouses in steady jobs.
• Renting a home, finding childcare, and learning a new role simultaneously can stretch seasoned public servants.
• Unions urge DHS for better relocation support, clearer timelines, and mental health services.
• Managers try to cluster reassignments to limit nationwide family uprooting, but mission needs often dictate location.

One open question is how long the surge will last after new ICE hires come online. If attrition remains high or caseloads continue to grow, DHS may keep a larger share of non-immigration staff on border work—resetting long-term workforce planning across agencies.

Clear outcomes and ongoing risks

Some results are already visible:

• DHS components have more personnel for detention, transport, and field operations.
• Records and logistics offices have added clerks and supervisors to reduce backlogs.
• Local coordination with police departments has expanded in several cities.

At the same time, risks increase elsewhere:

• Slower responses to cyber breaches
• Stretched disaster teams during peak seasons
• Fewer complex tax and criminal prosecutions
• Less maritime and aviation coverage during staffing surges

Final takeaways and immediate steps

For people interacting with the immigration system:
– Keep documents current, track case numbers, and use official channels for notices.
– Be aware that USCIS has new enforcement powers that may cause unease—but eligibility rules have not changed.

For federal staff receiving MDRs:
– Mark the one-week decision deadline and the 60-day relocation timeline.
– Meet with HR and your union, document hardships, ask about temporary duty or accommodation options, and request training schedules early.

Both supporters and critics agree on this: the current wave of DHS staff reassignments is reshaping federal work, centering immigration enforcement. Whether the country can maintain stability at the border without losing too much capacity in cyber, disaster response, tax enforcement, and serious crime will depend on how long the surge persists, how fast new ICE agents are trained, and how quickly agencies can recall experts during other crises. Until then, the United States is executing a high-wire act—pushing more people into border security while trying to keep other critical missions steady.