Information for asylum seekers about immigration detention

This post has information for asylum seekers about immigration detention, including key things to know, finding someone in detention, requesting release, and expedited removal.

You can also read these other resources: safety measures, and read about the risk of detention in immigration court, and the risk of detention at ICE check-ins.

Key things to know about immigration detention

1. You do not have to sign any documents that you cannot read and understand on your own.

2. You can ask to call your lawyer or a loved one. You can call your lawyer if you have one, or call a loved one who can help find a lawyer. Find a private immigration lawyer or nonprofit organization (search by the name of the detention center).   

3. If you have lived in the United States for more than 14 days, you can tell the immigration officials, and show proof if possible. The government is trying to put some immigrants in a faster deportation process called “expedited removal.”

4. If you are afraid of returning to your country of origin, you can say that you are afraid to return every chance you have. If you tell immigration officials you are afraid, you may receive a “Credible Fear” or “Reasonable Fear” Interview. If you have already applied for asylum, say that you have an asylum application pending.

5. You can ask to be released from detention, but it is not easy.

How to find someone who is detained

To find a detained adult, you can use this ICE website. At the top of the page, you can change the language. You can enter the following information about the person — first name, last name, date of birth, and country of birth — to try to find out which detention center they are in. If your loved one does not show up in the system, you can also read this guide for additional steps. 

It is important to check the ICE website regularly since people can be transferred to another detention center, often without notice.

To find a detained child, parents can try to call this government line: 1-800-203-7001 or try to email: [email protected]. This government resource has more information. You can also find more information for asylum seekers under 18 here. 

To contact a detained loved one, each detention center has different rules about how you can contact people who are detained and how you can put money in their accounts they can use to buy food or make calls. For information about each detention center, visit this government website and filter the search by the state where the detention center is located.

Requesting release from detention 

There are a few different ways that someone can request their release from detention, depending on their specific circumstances. If you are not sure if you qualify to request release under these options, you may want to talk to a lawyer. 

Bond hearings:

• Some people can ask an immigration judge to release them from detention through a process called a bond hearing. 

• If you entered the United States with a visa or if you crossed the border without encountering immigration officials, you may be eligible to request release from detention through bond. 

• You can read this guide for more information about how to request a bond hearing and what additional documents to provide in support of your release on bond. 

• If an immigration judge grants bond, they will set an amount that you need to pay to leave detention. If you are granted a bond and need help paying the bond amount, you may be able to request support.

• The U.S. government is trying to make it more difficult for immigrants who crossed the border without encountering immigration officials (“entered without inspection”) to request bond, and immigrants are fighting back through a lawsuit (scroll down to “Maldonado Bautista v. Noem”).

• As of November 2025, if you crossed the border without encountering immigration officials, you can include this court order and this class certification order with your bond request packet to show that you are eligible to request bond. However, even with the court orders, there are reports that immigration judges are still refusing to hold bond hearings. If that happens, you can consider filing a habeas petition.

Humanitarian parole: 

• Another possible way to request release from detention is by asking your Deportation Officer for “humanitarian parole” because of an urgent situation such as a serious medical condition or pregnancy. A Deportation Officer will be assigned to you, and usually detention staff will have a list of Deportation Officers with their contact information. 

• As of October 16, 2025, there is a new parole fee of $1,000 that applies if you are granted parole. In some cases, you may also be asked to pay a bond in order to be released from detention on humanitarian parole. If you need help paying the parole fee or bond amount you may be able to request support. 

• You can also read this guide for more information on how to request humanitarian parole. 

Habeas petitions: 

• Another possible way to request release from detention is to file a “petition for a writ of habeas corpus,” in a federal court.

• You can file a habeas petition for several reasons. In general, if you have been in detention for longer than 6 months without a bond hearing, you may be able to file a habeas petition. If you believe your detention is unlawful, you may be able to file a habeas petition. 

• You can learn more about habeas petitions here or in this guide (the guide is meant for people detained in specific detention facilities in California, but it can provide a general overview of the process).

• If you choose to file a habeas petition, generally, you must file it with the federal district court where you are being detained. You ca find your district court here (check off U.S. district court and enter your location). Most courts have sample petitions available on their website, such as this example. 

• You can also seek help from a lawyer in your area with a habeas petition.

Request to leave the U.S.: 

• If you decide you want to leave the U.S., you can read about things to consider before leaving. For example, depending on your circumstances, you may want to request voluntary departure from an immigration judge or withdraw your asylum application. 

If you are released from detention: 

• If you are released from detention, you can continue your immigration case in the immigration court that you are assigned to, which is usually the court closest to where you live. 

• In some cases, you may also be given an ankle monitor or have check-ins with ICE. 

If you are not released from detention: 

• If you continue to be detained and you are in a faster deportation process called “expedited removal,” you are supposed to receive a credible or reasonable fear interview. You will most likely be deported if you do not pass your interview. 

• If you continue to be detained and you are NOT in expedited removal, you can choose to apply for asylum if you are eligible, or other forms of immigration relief in immigration court while you are detained. 

  • If you win your case in detention and the government does not appeal the decision, you should be released from detention. If the government does appeal, you will likely remain in detention while the appeal process is pending. 

  • If you lose your case in detention, you have the right to appeal the decision. You will likely remain in detention while the appeal process is pending. If you do not appeal, the immigration judge’s deportation order will be final and you will likely be deported. 

• If you lose your case and your deportation order becomes final, the U.S. government will likely try to deport you to the country of origin. The U.S. government is also now trying to send some immigrants to other countries that are not their country of origin. There have been reports of this happening across the country, and immigrants are fighting against this policy through a lawsuit. If you are detained and you are told you could be sent to another country, and if you are afraid to be sent to that country, tell as many immigration officers as possible. Learn more here.

Expedited removal (faster deportation process)

Expedited removal is a process that allows the government to deport some immigrants more quickly. Immigrants can be put in the expedited removal process right after they arrive in the U.S., or if their case is dismissed. People are almost always detained during the expedited removal process. Since January 2025, the government has been trying to expand expedited removal to include many more immigrants. 

However, as of August 29, 2025, a court has ordered that the government can only put people in expedited removal if (1) they have been in the United States for less than 14 days and they are within 100 miles of the land border, or (2) they arrived by sea, were not admitted or paroled, and have been present in the U.S. for less than 2 years. If you are not in one of those two situations, the government is not supposed to put you in expedited removal.  If you believe that you should not be in expedited removal, you should tell as many officials as possible. This information can change in the future and we will continue to update this page as we learn more.

When someone who is in the expedited removal process tells the government that they are afraid to return to their country of origin, the government is supposed to give them a Credible or Reasonable Fear Interview.

Credible or Reasonable Fear Interviews

If you tell immigration officials that you are afraid to return to your country of origin, and you are in the expedited removal process, you are supposed to receive a Credible Fear or Reasonable Fear Interview.

Immigration officials will likely not ask you if you are scared, so you can tell as many officials as possible as many times as you can. If you have already applied for asylum, you can tell the immigration officials that. You can also try to submit a letter to ICE that explains why you are afraid. There is a sample letter on page 36 of this guide. 

A Credible or Reasonable Fear Interview is different from a normal asylum interview with USCIS. At the interview, you can explain to an immigration official why you are afraid to return to your country of origin.

If you pass the interview, you are then supposed to be able to apply for asylum or other forms of protection in immigration court. You could be detained during this process. If you do not pass your interview, you can ask the immigration judge to review the asylum officer’s decision. If the immigration judge agrees with the asylum officer’s decision, you will most likely receive a deportation order. If the immigration judge does not agree with the asylum officer’s decision, you are then supposed to be able to apply for asylum or other forms of protection in immigration court.

This guide has more information about Credible and Reasonable Fear Interviews. However, please know that these resources have not been updated recently, and we do not know exactly how this process will work now.

More resources

• This resource has information for people whose loved ones are detained. 

• This guide has information for immigrants in detention. 

• This website has many other guides and resources.   

• You can contact Freedom for Immigrants for assistance at [email protected]. If you are currently detained, the direct line to call from inside the detention center is 9233#. 

• You can find a private immigration lawyer or nonprofit organization (search by the name of the detention center).