In a controversial move that could significantly accelerate U.S. deportation procedures, the Trump administration has authorized U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to deport migrants to third countries with as little as six hours’ notice, according to a memo obtained by Reuters.
The memo, dated July 9 and issued by ICE acting director Todd Lyons, outlines a shift in the agency’s removal policy. Typically, ICE gives at least 24 hours notice before deporting a person to a country other than their home nation. However, the new guidance permits six-hour notices in “exigent circumstances”, a change that immigration advocates fear could lead to hasty and potentially dangerous deportations.
Under this policy, migrants may be removed to countries that have assured the U.S. they will not persecute or torture deportees, removing the need for further asylum or humanitarian screening.
The change comes in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in June, which lifted lower court restrictions on deportations to third countries. Following the ruling, ICE deported eight migrants — from Cuba, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Sudan, and Vietnam — to South Sudan, a country where they held no known ties. The administration has also been pressing African nations including Liberia, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, and Gabon to accept deportees from other nations.
Critics argue that the policy is both legally dubious and ethically dangerous. “It falls far short of providing the statutory and due process protections that the law requires,” said Trina Realmuto, an attorney representing a group challenging the policy in court. Opponents warn that migrants could be sent to countries where they face violence, language barriers, and a complete lack of support systems.
Supporters within the Trump administration defend the move as a necessary tool to expedite deportations, particularly of individuals with criminal records or failed asylum claims. The administration has described the strategy as part of its broader mission to “remove individuals who have no lawful right to remain in the U.S.”
While the practice of third-country deportations is not new, this expansion signals that the Trump administration may be preparing to use it more aggressively and more frequently than ever before. During his first term in office (2017–2021), Trump oversaw limited deportations of migrants from El Salvador and Honduras to Guatemala, but the scope was relatively narrow.
Now, with expanded legal backing and a more assertive approach from ICE, the U.S. could be entering a new chapter in its immigration enforcement strategy—one that critics say could test the limits of international human rights obligations.