US immigration agents are patrolling airports to arrest visa overstayers

Visa overstays have typically been a civil violation rather than a criminal offence, given these are foreigners who entered the US legally. Many in the US also often find themselves in a risky position because their Green Card applications for US permanent residency do not get processed in time - before their visas expire. At least 27 people have been arrested across nine states using this strategy so far, ABC News found.

ICE is using traveller data from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which runs airport security and scans every person who is scheduled to fly, whether domestic or international. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, said in a statement that any visa overstayers will only be permitted to use US airports to "self-deport". (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); The move comes as the Trump administration, under the new DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, aims to boost arrest numbers and meet the president's campaign goal of one million deportations a year of "illegals", or those who entered the country undocumented.

Many say they are seeking asylum, but that pathway has now largely been shut down. A surge Last month, ICE had its highest number of bookings into its immigration detention facilities since Trump assumed power in January 2025. More than 43,000 people were taken into custody to await deportation, with an average of 1,500 arrests per day in June, ICE's own data showed.

DHS maintains that it does not have an arrest quota, but ICE agents themselves have been overheard discussing receiving bonuses if arrests surge. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Media coverage has largely died down since Trump ende… In an effort to ramp up deportations, federal immigration authorities have a new tactic: arresting people who overstay their visas in airports, according to an immigration memo obtained by ABC News.