By Adeola Kunle
The United States has intensified its immigration enforcement efforts by detaining foreign nationals whose visas have expired at airports across the country, signalling a broader approach by President Donald Trump's administration to immigration control.
According to a report by The New York Times, published on Wednesday, officers of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have carried out arrests at check-in counters, boarding gates and arrival terminals in at least 15 airports in recent weeks.
The enforcement action has reportedly affected a wide range of foreign nationals, including spouses of U.S. citizens, skilled professionals awaiting visa renewals, former exchange programme participants and other migrants with pending immigration applications.
The report stated that the arrests mark a significant expansion of an existing partnership between the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and ICE.
Previously, the joint programme mainly focused on individuals who already had final deportation orders. However, internal documents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, reviewed by The New York Times, indicate that the operation now also targets people whose visas have expired, even when they have pending applications to remain legally in the United States.
Each year, hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals remain in the U.S. after their visas expire. Many of them continue to reside legally while awaiting decisions on visa extensions, permanent residency applications or other immigration benefits, often holding valid work permits during that period.
In previous years, such individuals were generally not considered a priority for deportation unless they had been convicted of criminal offences.
Defending the latest enforcement strategy, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said the administration remains committed to enforcing the country's immigration laws.
"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," the spokesperson said.
The department, however, did not confirm whether the airport enforcement programme had officially been expanded.
The report also indicated that the White House has stepped up pressure on ICE to increase immigration arrests nationwide. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin is reportedly targeting approximately 2,000 immigration arrests each day.
Immigration lawyers told The New York Times that the new enforcement measures have affected clients from more than a dozen countries, including individuals with pending asylum applications, work visa renewals and marriage-based permanent residency applications.
One of the reported cases involved Chantal Morales Rojas, a 27-year-old Ecuadorian former au pair, who was arrested while preparing to board a domestic flight. Her visa had expired, although she reportedly had a pending immigration application and valid work authorisation.
Another case involved a Ugandan woman living with sickle cell anaemia who was detained despite having an active asylum application before U.S. immigration authorities.
Reacting to the development, immigration lawyer Charles Kuck described the enforcement action as unprecedented during his decades of legal practice.
"In 38 years practising immigration law, I had never seen this," Kuck said, adding, "And I know it's happening to lots of people."
DIP CONNECT ONLINE NEWS reports that the latest airport arrests represent a significant shift in U.S. immigration enforcement, extending beyond individuals with existing deportation orders to include visa overstayers whose immigration applications are still awaiting official decisions.
ADEOLA KUNLE
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