ICE is authorized to enter homes without a warrant, according to memo obtained by AP

A new report claims that federal immigration officers are being authorized to forcibly enter homes without a judge’s warrant based on a memo that was released last year.

An internal Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo was obtained by The Associated Press, along with a “whistleblower complaint from an official in Congress, who shared it on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive documents. The AP verified the authenticity of the accounts in the complaint.”

However, while the memo said ICE officers could forcibly enter homes and make arrests, it is important to note that the actions are not random but targeted, using a signed administrative warrant to arrest those in the country illegally who have final deportation orders issued against them.

The May 12, 2025, memo was reportedly signed by the acting director of ICE, Todd Lyons and states, in part, “Although the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has not historically relied on administrative warrants alone to arrest aliens subject to final orders of removal in their place of residence, the DHS Office of the General Counsel has recently determined that the U.S. Constitution, the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the immigration regulations do not prohibit relying on administrative warrants for this purpose.”

As left-wing media and critics jumped on the bandwagon to further demonize ICE, Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin slapped the AP with a fact check on those administrative warrants.

“Administrative warrants have been used for decades and recognized by the Supreme Court and lower courts,” she noted in a post on X. “In every case that DHS uses an Administrative warrant to enter a residence, an illegal alien has already had their full due process and a final order of removal by a federal immigration judge. The officer also has probable cause.”

They have an Administrative warrant.

Administrative warrants have been used for decades and recognized by the Supreme Court and lower courts.

In every case that DHS uses an Administrative warrant to enter a residence, an illegal alien has already had their full due process… https://t.co/i9jxFJFgne

— Tricia McLaughlin (@TriciaOhio) January 22, 2026

The outlet noted that, according to the whistleblower complaint, the memo has “not been widely shared within the agency.” However, the contents of the memo have allegedly been used to train new ICE officers.

“New ICE hires and those still in training are being told to follow the memo’s guidance instead of written training materials that actually contradict the memo, according to the whistleblower disclosure,” the AP reported.

A signed administrative warrant known as an I-205 can be used by ICE agents to enter homes and arrest illegal immigrants if there is a final order of removal that has been issued by an immigration judge, the Board of Immigration Appeals or a district judge or magistrate judge.

The “final” part of the final order of removal means that due process has run its course, right? The person is subject to deportation, with no further court action required.

— Byron York (@ByronYork) January 22, 2026

“Should the alien refuse admittance, ICE officers and agents should use only a necessary and reasonable amount of force to enter the alien’s residence, following proper notification of the officer or agent’s authority and intent to enter,” the memo reportedly stated.

The organization Whistleblower Aid told The Associated Press that it is representing two unidentified U.S. government officials “disclosing a secretive — and seemingly unconstitutional — policy directive.”

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Frieda Powers

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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.

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