The Trump administration has authorized immigration officials to deport migrants to third countries with as little as six hours’ notice, but only under “exigent circumstances,” according to a memo obtained by Reuters.
The directive, issued by Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons on July 9, outlines a significant shift in policy, signaling the administration’s intent to accelerate deportations to nations beyond a migrant’s country of origin.
Under standard procedure, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is expected to provide at least 24 hours’ notice before removing someone to a third country. However, the memo states that in urgent situations, deportations can proceed with only six hours’ warning.
The targeted countries are ones that have agreed not to persecute or torture deportees, eliminating the need for further legal procedures.
This policy change follows a Supreme Court ruling in June that overturned a lower court’s block on such deportations. The ruling cleared the path for the administration to send migrants to third countries without verifying potential threats they may face there.
Shortly after the court’s decision, ICE reportedly deported eight migrants from countries including Cuba, Mexico, Laos, Sudan, Vietnam, and Myanmar to South Sudan. Last week, the administration also pressured five African nations — Liberia, Senegal, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, and Gabon — to accept deportees who originated elsewhere.
The White House defends the policy as a necessary tool to swiftly remove individuals who lack legal status or have criminal convictions. But critics argue the approach is reckless and inhumane, potentially stranding people in unfamiliar and unsafe countries.
Trina Realmuto, an attorney leading a class-action lawsuit against the policy, warned that it “falls far short of providing the statutory and due process protections that the law requires.”
Although deportations to third countries have occurred in the past — such as transfers from El Salvador and Honduras to Guatemala during Trump’s first term — the frequency and speed of such removals are now expected to increase significantly as the administration steps up its immigration enforcement.
