Can ICE Arrest You at the Airport If Your Visa Status Has Expired?

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) can arrest travelers with expired status at U.S. airports, including people boarding domestic flights, as airport arrests expand under the administration’s late 2025 and early 2026 enforcement approach. The risk includes people with expired visas and expired I-94 records.

Lawyers have reported arrests at at least 15 major airports in recent weeks. Those locations include Houston’s IAH, Las Vegas’s LAS, Nashville’s BNA and Washington-Dulles’s IAD.

The encounters have occurred at check-in counters and security checkpoints. Some have involved airline staff with status issues while they were mid-flight.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said July 30 that airports no longer provide safe passage for people without current lawful status.

“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.”

A DHS spokesperson said July 29 that the department had reversed what it described as a Biden-era policy allowing people without lawful status to travel domestically. The official added:

“DHS reversed the horrendous Biden-era policy that allowed aliens in our country illegally to jet around our country. Under President Trump, DHS will no longer tolerate this.”

A pending application may not stop an airport arrest

The enforcement expansion reaches beyond people with completed removal cases. Officials and lawyers have identified travelers with expired visa stamps as potential targets even when they have a pending application.

Those filings can include an Extension of Stay or Adjustment of Status. A pending USCIS filing may create a period of authorized stay in some circumstances, but that period does not prevent an arrest at an airport under the current policy described by officials.

The concern also covers some spouses of U.S. citizens waiting for green card interviews. Nonimmigrants with Employment Authorization Documents may face the same issue if their underlying H-1B or L-1 status has lapsed.

A work permit does not necessarily restore the underlying nonimmigrant classification. Travelers with overlapping or unresolved immigration records may need individualized legal advice before flying.

TSA passenger data now feeds immigration screening

The airport strategy partly relies on a data-sharing agreement between the Transportation Security Administration and the immigration agency. Signed in May 2025, the agreement allows TSA to share real-time passenger data, including names and photos.

The agency uses those records to flag people with expired visa records or final removal orders before they reach the gate. That represents a change from the earlier division of responsibilities.

TSA traditionally focused on security threats such as weapons and explosives rather than immigration status. Domestic air travel was therefore considered relatively safe for many visa overstayers.

The approach changed in late 2025 and early 2026. The 2026 Enforcement Framework gives field officers broad discretion to arrest people without valid status.

Airports appeal to enforcement officials because they are “secure environments” where travelers are unarmed and their movements are predictable. The agency has described domestic flying as a privilege for people with current lawful status.

Federal funding supports thousands of daily arrests

The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” H.R. 1, signed July 4, 2025, provided nearly $75 billion to the agency. The funding tripled its budget.

It also supports a stated goal of 2,000 to 3,000 arrests per day. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said July 17:

“We're turning up the heat on the streets. the ICE crackdown will intensify.”

The 2026 Enforcement Framework gives field officers broad discretion to arrest any individual without valid status. That authority forms part of a wider enforcement effort, rather than a rule limited to travelers with final removal orders.

DHS also defended airport encounters as public-safety measures after an attempted arrest at Harry Reid International Airport on July 13. The department said officers may confront people at airports to “de-escalate” domestic travel by unauthorized persons.

Lawyers advise caution before domestic travel

Immigration attorneys have advised clients with unresolved status issues to avoid domestic air travel. When travel cannot be avoided, lawyers recommend carrying records that show a pending case or timely filing.

Those materials include:

• Original USCIS receipt notices, including Form I-797;
• Proof that an extension was filed on time;
• A valid government-issued photo ID; and
• Contact information for an immigration attorney.

Documents may help explain a traveler’s situation. They do not remove the risk of detention under the policy described by officials.

A pending USCIS receipt, an employment authorization card or a domestic itinerary may not eliminate questioning or detention risks. The underlying immigration record remains important, including whether a visa stamp, I-94 or nonimmigrant classification has lapsed.

The department’s airport posture emerged alongside the May 2025 information-sharing agreement and intensified during late 2025 and early 2026. Officials have also tied airport encounters to public safety and the effort to stop unauthorized domestic travel.

This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific case.