ICE Policies Under Biden Administration: A Detailed Look

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), during President Joe Biden’s tenure and under former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, reportedly allowed millions of undocumented immigrants who overstayed their visas to remain in the United States, categorizing them as “non-priority” aliens.

A report from DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari highlights a significant lack of immigration enforcement under the current administration, especially in relation to those who have overstayed their visas.

Between 2021 and 2024, ICE received over 3.1 million leads about visa overstays. Among those, around 104,000 were labeled as potential threats to national security or public safety. However, fewer than 500 of those leads were followed up on, and ultimately just eight individuals were arrested for overstaying their visas.

Markwayne Mullin, the DHS Secretary, expressed his frustration, stating that the extent of the Biden administration’s negligence is both staggering and infuriating, as it has put American lives at risk.

The report indicates that a directive issued by the Biden administration in September 2021 instructed ICE agents to only investigate visa overstay leads marked as “Priority 1,” effectively leaving millions of overstays unaddressed. Out of the fewer than 1,800 leads classified as Priority 1, only 84 were investigated, resulting in just two arrests.

The IG report noted, “ICE conducted few nonimmigrant overstay lead-initiated investigations and arrested even fewer foreign nationals who stayed beyond or violated the terms of their admission, due to the September 2021 policy directing limited resources to leads posing a threat to national security, public safety, and border security.”

Additionally, the report pointed out challenges ICE faced when attempting to act on leads, including difficulties verifying addresses and locating foreign nationals in the U.S. Moreover, ICE lacked the necessary resources to pursue all overstay leads.

According to the latest DHS report, almost half a million foreign nationals overstayed their visas and remained in the U.S. in Fiscal Year 2024.

Mullin remarked, “Unlike the Biden administration, the Trump administration will always prioritize the safety of the American people. We will aim to target and remove as many illegal aliens as possible to restore safety in America.”