- ICE expanded airport operations to 18 major hubs as of July 2026.
- A data-sharing agreement allows ICE to access passenger lists for screening.
- Agents are targeting visa overstayers and applicants with pending immigration cases.
ICE expanded operations across an 18-airport list as of July 30, 2026, while separate reports describe recent enforcement actions at at least 15 airports. ICE Agents are listed at major hubs in four regions.
The Department of Homeland Security has not published one public roster identifying every airport with a permanent presence. The 18-airport list combines official DHS deployments from March 2026 with confirmed enforcement actions through July 29, 2026.
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The administration has moved beyond the staffing assistance role announced earlier this year. It is now conducting immigration sweeps involving visa overstayers and people with pending immigration cases.
A DHS spokesperson said Thursday that the administration wants to restrict air travel for people it considers unlawfully present.
"This administration is working diligently to ensure that aliens in our country illegally can no longer fly unless it is out of our country to self-deport."
President Donald Trump announced the airport deployment on March 22, 2026, saying ICE would assist TSA personnel under Tom Homan’s direction.
"On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents. They will do a fantastic job. The great Tom Homan is in charge!"
The 18 identified airports stretch from New England to Puerto Rico
The reported locations include large international gateways, connecting hubs and airports serving major metropolitan areas. The list breaks down as follows:
| Region | Airports identified in 2026 operations |
|---|---|
| Northeast | John F. Kennedy (JFK), LaGuardia (LGA), Newark Liberty (EWR), Philadelphia (PHL), Pittsburgh (PIT), Bradley International (BDL) |
| South | Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta (ATL), William P. Hobby (HOU), George Bush Intercontinental (IAH), Louis Armstrong New Orleans (MSY), Southwest Florida (RSW), Baltimore/Washington (BWI), Luis Muñoz Marín (SJU) |
| Midwest | Chicago-O'Hare (ORD), Cleveland Hopkins (CLE) |
| West | Los Angeles (LAX), Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX), Denver International (DEN) |
The list contains 18 named airports. It should not be confused with the separate recent-enforcement count.
Internal DHS documents cited in late-July reports indicate that enforcement actions took place at at least 15 airports in recent weeks. That count covers reported activity during a particular period, while the 18-airport list covers confirmed deployments and operations through July 29.
Some agents have worked in plain clothes. Their reported locations included check-in counters and boarding gates.
A TSA-ICE data-sharing agreement broadens passenger screening
A May 2025 Memorandum of Agreement between the Transportation Security Administration and ICE became public in late July 2026. The data-sharing agreement formalizes the use of Secure Flight information to identify travelers of interest.
ICE receives passenger lists and checks them against immigration databases. The process can direct agents toward travelers inside secured airport areas.
The operation initially focused on people with final orders of removal. July reports describe a wider range of targets, including people who overstayed visas, even by a few days.
Other reported targets include spouses of U.S. citizens with pending Green Card applications and skilled H-1B workers awaiting visa extensions. The categories include people with active immigration matters.
ICE has stated that a pending case “does NOT confer legal status” or prevent an arrest. Immigration attorneys also report detentions involving people with valid work permits and pending asylum cases.
The enforcement campaign carries a daily numerical goal. ICE is under pressure to meet a White House target of 2,000 to 3,000 arrests daily.
A June rule requires registration evidence at all times
A DHS final rule issued June 29, 2026, requires all aliens over 14 to carry evidence of registration at all times. Agents can use the requirement when pursuing a detention for failure to register.
The rule adds to federal immigration investigative authority. USCIS announced a “New Era” on September 4, 2025, empowering special agents classified as 1811 officers to “investigate, arrest, and present for prosecution those who violate America’s immigration laws.”
Those officers can handle cases from “start to finish” instead of referring them to ICE. The announcement describes authority, not a separate airport roster.
Mullin links international-flight processing to local cooperation
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin told Congress on June 3, 2026, that the department could reassign CBP officers from international-flight processing in sanctuary cities if local authorities do not cooperate.
“If that means I got to pull [CBP officers] out of Customs and Border Protection from processing international flights [in sanctuary cities], I will. If they're cooperating with us, then I don't have to do that.”
Mullin has threatened to halt international flight processing at airports in sanctuary cities. Seattle, San Francisco and Boston were among the cities identified in that warning.
That threat concerns international arrivals and departures. The reported airport enforcement operations also involve domestic travelers.
Noncitizens traveling within the United States face scrutiny that previously centered more heavily on people entering from abroad. A valid work permit or pending asylum case may not prevent an arrest, while the registration rule creates an additional document requirement.
The administration’s July 30 statement keeps airports at the center of its enforcement strategy. The reported activity spans the 18 named airports and the separate recent-enforcement count of at least 15 locations.
