This chapter explains some of the rules around detention and bonds.
For a PDF of this chapter, see pages 9-13 of the PDF version of this guide.
Some people in Immigration detention have a right to be released on bond while others do not.
A bond is an amount set by ICE or the Immigration Judge that you must pay before being released from immigration detention. It helps guarantee that you will show up for your court hearings and leave the U.S. at the end of your case if you do not win. If the bond is paid, you will be released from detention during your case. At the end of your case, the person who paid the bond will get the money back if you win or if you leave the U.S. when you are ordered to do so. If you miss a hearing or if you do not leave the U.S. by the date ordered, the person who paid the bond will lose the money. Bonds can be set as low as $1,500, but usually they are in the range of $3,500-12,500.
No. Many people do not have a right to ask for bond. You are not eligible for bond if:
- you have certain criminal convictions and are subject to “mandatory detention” or
- a final order of removal or
- you entered the U.S. at a port of entry and requested asylum (“arriving alien”) or
- you have passed a Credible Fear Interview (CFI). Even if you have been convicted of certain types of crimes, you can still ask for bond.
You are in mandatory detention (not bond eligible) if you have been convicted of an aggravated felony, nearly any drug conviction, or most crimes of moral turpitude. 8 U.S.C 1226(c).1
Usually, you only get 1 bond hearing, so it is important to gather the evidence you need before asking for a bond hearing. You can ask for a bond hearing at any time before your Individual Hearing (which is when the Immigration Judge hears your case for immigration relief.) Before your bond hearing, you should send the Immigration Court evidence that
- you are not a danger to the community;
- you are not a threat to national security; and
- you are not a flight risk.
It is usually better to tell the Judge that you do not want a bond hearing right away and need more time to collect evidence. When you have your evidence, mail it to the Chelmsford Immigration Court, Clerk’s Office, 150 Apollo Drive, Chelmsford, MA 01824. Be sure that your A number is on everything you mail to the Court to file in your case. The PAIR Project has additional information that it can give you on requesting bond.
The Immigration Judge will first decide whether you have a right to ask for bond or whether you are required to stay in detention without bond due to certain criminal convictions described above. If you have a right to seek bond, the Judge will usually ask you questions about your background. The government (ICE) has the burden to show by clear and convincing evidence that you are a danger to the community. The government also has the burden to show that it is more likely than not that you are a flight risk. Because the government has the burden to prove to the judge that you should stay detained, the government’s lawyer will present his or her arguments first.
Specifically, the lawyer for the government (ICE) will present evidence to the Judge about any of your arrests and criminal convictions, and your past immigration history. The evidence will likely include any police reports if you were arrested. You should assume that the judge will believe as true any information in the police reports, even if they are not.
The Judge will ask you questions about any criminal charges or conviction you may have and about any drug or alcohol use you may engaged in. The Judge will consider the same kind of evidence used for bail in a criminal case, to decide whether you are a danger to the community, a flight risk, or a threat to security, including:
- your ties to the community,
- your length of residence in the U.S.,
- your family members in the U.S. and their immigration status,
- your employment history and job offer in writing,
- your history of appearance in other court cases,
- whether you are a danger to the community or a security threat,
- your criminal record and rehabilitation, and
- your likelihood of winning your immigration case.
If you have a criminal conviction, it does not help to tell the Immigration Judge that you did not commit the crime or that it was a misunderstanding and that you are innocent. The Immigration Judge cannot change your criminal record and she will not grant bond if she does not believe you are honest. You want to focus on your ties to your family and community and tell the Judge how long you have lived in the U.S., where your family is, whether you have a job offer, how you have changed if you have been in prison, what type of relief you are seeking in Immigration Court (like asylum, or cancellation of removal), and how much money you have to pay a bond. If you have not lived in the U.S. before, it will help if you have a sponsor who is someone close to you and if you have a strong asylum claim.
Try to gather as much written evidence as you can, and to have at least one or two witnesses attend your bond hearing by video (Webex) so that they can testify for you. Your witnesses can find the Webex video link for your hearing online: Access Internet-Based Hearings. They must know the name of your Immigration Judge at the Chelmsford Immigration Court to find the Webex address.
Ask your witnesses to write letters of support that you can give to the Immigration Judge. Witnesses could include your spouse or children or other family members who have legal status, or the victim of the crime, or your employer or someone offering you a job, or your pastor or other religious leader, or a probation officer, or a social worker. Other helpful evidence to give the Judge could be:
- If you are married to a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, a copy of the marriage certificate, the birth certificate or certificate of naturalization or green card of your spouse.
- If your children have legal status, a copy of their birth certificates and green cards.
- If you have a medical condition, a letter from your doctor.
- If you have professional training or education in the U.S., a copy of your GED, or diploma or other certificates.
- Proof of the length of time you have lived in the U.S.
The person who pays the bond needs to have legal status. He or she is called the “obligor” and is the only person who can ask for the bond money back at the end of the case. The obligor can pay your bond at any ICE/ERO Field Office around the country. If they are paying the bond locally, they must bring a bank check or money order in the amount of the bond payable to: “U.S. Department of Homeland Security".
ICE/Enforcement and Removal Operations
Boston Field Office
1000 District Avenue
Burlington, MA 01083
Phone: 781-359-7500
Open for bond Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The obligor must bring his or her driver’s license, green card, passport or other valid identification. The obligor will pay the bond money and sign some papers stating that he or she will get the money back at the end of the case if you go to all your court hearings and leave if the Judge orders deportation. The obligor must keep these original bond papers since he or she will need them to get the money back at the end of the case. If you flee the area or miss any court hearings, the obligor will lose the bond money and you can be deported if the Judge issued a final order of deportation.
The government has 90 days after a final order to deport you from the U.S. 8 U.S.C. §1231(a). After that, the government may release you from detention. However, you will remain detained after 90 days if the government thinks it will still be able to deport you, or if ICE believes you are a danger to the community or a flight risk. See 8 U.S.C. §1231(a)(6).
Within 90 days after a deportation order, the government must review your case for possible release. You may have a “custody review” even if you are currently in Immigration Court proceedings because you have returned to the U.S. after being deported and are seeking protection under Withholding of Removal or the Convention Against Torture (CAT). ICE rarely releases people at 90 days unless ICE has determined that it will not be able to deport them in the future.
If you want to be considered for release, you should write the government about where you will be living, if you have a job offer, whether your family and friends will support you, why you are not a danger to the community, and why you are not going to miss any appointments. See the sample letter in Appendix C requesting release under supervision. Send this information to:
ICE/Enforcement and Removal Operations
Boston Field Office
1000 District Avenue
Burlington, MA 01803
If the government does not deport you after 6 months, then in most cases the government should release you. The law says that if your deportation is not reasonably foreseeable, the government must release most people after 6 months following your deportation order becoming final. Your order is final only after any appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals is concluded. If you appealed your deportation order, and the appeal is still pending, the 6-month time period for release has not yet started.
You can write to the address listed above and request your release. You can also write to ICE headquarters in Washington, D.C. asking for release after waiting 6 months from your final deportation order. You write to:
ICE, Office of Enforcement and Removal
Headquarters 500 12th St SW #5600
Washington, DC 20024
Phone: +1 703 603-3400
In order for ICE to consider you for release, you must cooperate with ICE in helping them get travel documents for you to return to your home country. You must give ICE a copy of your birth certificate or your passport, or you must contact your consulate for travel documents so that ICE can try to start your deportation. If you do not cooperate with ICE, this 6-month time period does not start, and ICE can detain you even longer. If you appeal your immigration case to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) or have a stay of removal, the 6-month time period does not begin to run.
If you are not released, and 6 months or more has passed since your order of removal became final, you can file a habeas corpus petition in federal court. For sample habeas forms, and a self-help manual on how to file a habeas petition, call or write the PAIR Project.
Some people in Immigration detention have a right to be released on bond while others do not.
A bond is an amount set by ICE or the Immigration Judge that you must pay before being released from immigration detention. It helps guarantee that you will show up for your court hearings and leave the U.S. at the end of your case if you do not win. If the bond is paid, you will be released from detention during your case. At the end of your case, the person who paid the bond will get the money back if you win or if you leave the U.S. when you are ordered to do so. If you miss a hearing or if you do not leave the U.S. by the date ordered, the person who paid the bond will lose the money. Bonds can be set as low as $1,500, but usually they are in the range of $3,500-12,500.
No. Many people do not have a right to ask for bond. You are not eligible for bond if:
- you have certain criminal convictions and are subject to “mandatory detention” or
- a final order of removal or
- you entered the U.S. at a port of entry and requested asylum (“arriving alien”) or
- you have passed a Credible Fear Interview (CFI). Even if you have been convicted of certain types of crimes, you can still ask for bond.
You are in mandatory detention (not bond eligible) if you have been convicted of an aggravated felony, nearly any drug conviction, or most crimes of moral turpitude. 8 U.S.C 1226(c).1
Usually, you only get 1 bond hearing, so it is important to gather the evidence you need before asking for a bond hearing. You can ask for a bond hearing at any time before your Individual Hearing (which is when the Immigration Judge hears your case for immigration relief.) Before your bond hearing, you should send the Immigration Court evidence that
- you are not a danger to the community;
- you are not a threat to national security; and
- you are not a flight risk.
It is usually better to tell the Judge that you do not want a bond hearing right away and need more time to collect evidence. When you have your evidence, mail it to the Chelmsford Immigration Court, Clerk’s Office, 150 Apollo Drive, Chelmsford, MA 01824. Be sure that your A number is on everything you mail to the Court to file in your case. The PAIR Project has additional information that it can give you on requesting bond.
The Immigration Judge will first decide whether you have a right to ask for bond or whether you are required to stay in detention without bond due to certain criminal convictions described above. If you have a right to seek bond, the Judge will usually ask you questions about your background. The government (ICE) has the burden to show by clear and convincing evidence that you are a danger to the community. The government also has the burden to show that it is more likely than not that you are a flight risk. Because the government has the burden to prove to the judge that you should stay detained, the government’s lawyer will present his or her arguments first.
Specifically, the lawyer for the government (ICE) will present evidence to the Judge about any of your arrests and criminal convictions, and your past immigration history. The evidence will likely include any police reports if you were arrested. You should assume that the judge will believe as true any information in the police reports, even if they are not.
The Judge will ask you questions about any criminal charges or conviction you may have and about any drug or alcohol use you may engaged in. The Judge will consider the same kind of evidence used for bail in a criminal case, to decide whether you are a danger to the community, a flight risk, or a threat to security, including:
- your ties to the community,
- your length of residence in the U.S.,
- your family members in the U.S. and their immigration status,
- your employment history and job offer in writing,
- your history of appearance in other court cases,
- whether you are a danger to the community or a security threat,
- your criminal record and rehabilitation, and
- your likelihood of winning your immigration case.
If you have a criminal conviction, it does not help to tell the Immigration Judge that you did not commit the crime or that it was a misunderstanding and that you are innocent. The Immigration Judge cannot change your criminal record and she will not grant bond if she does not believe you are honest. You want to focus on your ties to your family and community and tell the Judge how long you have lived in the U.S., where your family is, whether you have a job offer, how you have changed if you have been in prison, what type of relief you are seeking in Immigration Court (like asylum, or cancellation of removal), and how much money you have to pay a bond. If you have not lived in the U.S. before, it will help if you have a sponsor who is someone close to you and if you have a strong asylum claim.
Try to gather as much written evidence as you can, and to have at least one or two witnesses attend your bond hearing by video (Webex) so that they can testify for you. Your witnesses can find the Webex video link for your hearing online: Access Internet-Based Hearings. They must know the name of your Immigration Judge at the Chelmsford Immigration Court to find the Webex address.
Ask your witnesses to write letters of support that you can give to the Immigration Judge. Witnesses could include your spouse or children or other family members who have legal status, or the victim of the crime, or your employer or someone offering you a job, or your pastor or other religious leader, or a probation officer, or a social worker. Other helpful evidence to give the Judge could be:
- If you are married to a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, a copy of the marriage certificate, the birth certificate or certificate of naturalization or green card of your spouse.
- If your children have legal status, a copy of their birth certificates and green cards.
- If you have a medical condition, a letter from your doctor.
- If you have professional training or education in the U.S., a copy of your GED, or diploma or other certificates.
- Proof of the length of time you have lived in the U.S.
The person who pays the bond needs to have legal status. He or she is called the “obligor” and is the only person who can ask for the bond money back at the end of the case. The obligor can pay your bond at any ICE/ERO Field Office around the country. If they are paying the bond locally, they must bring a bank check or money order in the amount of the bond payable to: “U.S. Department of Homeland Security".
ICE/Enforcement and Removal Operations
Boston Field Office
1000 District Avenue
Burlington, MA 01083
Phone: 781-359-7500
Open for bond Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The obligor must bring his or her driver’s license, green card, passport or other valid identification. The obligor will pay the bond money and sign some papers stating that he or she will get the money back at the end of the case if you go to all your court hearings and leave if the Judge orders deportation. The obligor must keep these original bond papers since he or she will need them to get the money back at the end of the case. If you flee the area or miss any court hearings, the obligor will lose the bond money and you can be deported if the Judge issued a final order of deportation.
The government has 90 days after a final order to deport you from the U.S. 8 U.S.C. §1231(a). After that, the government may release you from detention. However, you will remain detained after 90 days if the government thinks it will still be able to deport you, or if ICE believes you are a danger to the community or a flight risk. See 8 U.S.C. §1231(a)(6).
Within 90 days after a deportation order, the government must review your case for possible release. You may have a “custody review” even if you are currently in Immigration Court proceedings because you have returned to the U.S. after being deported and are seeking protection under Withholding of Removal or the Convention Against Torture (CAT). ICE rarely releases people at 90 days unless ICE has determined that it will not be able to deport them in the future.
If you want to be considered for release, you should write the government about where you will be living, if you have a job offer, whether your family and friends will support you, why you are not a danger to the community, and why you are not going to miss any appointments. See the sample letter in Appendix C requesting release under supervision. Send this information to:
ICE/Enforcement and Removal Operations
Boston Field Office
1000 District Avenue
Burlington, MA 01803
If the government does not deport you after 6 months, then in most cases the government should release you. The law says that if your deportation is not reasonably foreseeable, the government must release most people after 6 months following your deportation order becoming final. Your order is final only after any appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals is concluded. If you appealed your deportation order, and the appeal is still pending, the 6-month time period for release has not yet started.
You can write to the address listed above and request your release. You can also write to ICE headquarters in Washington, D.C. asking for release after waiting 6 months from your final deportation order. You write to:
ICE, Office of Enforcement and Removal
Headquarters 500 12th St SW #5600
Washington, DC 20024
Phone: +1 703 603-3400
In order for ICE to consider you for release, you must cooperate with ICE in helping them get travel documents for you to return to your home country. You must give ICE a copy of your birth certificate or your passport, or you must contact your consulate for travel documents so that ICE can try to start your deportation. If you do not cooperate with ICE, this 6-month time period does not start, and ICE can detain you even longer. If you appeal your immigration case to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) or have a stay of removal, the 6-month time period does not begin to run.
If you are not released, and 6 months or more has passed since your order of removal became final, you can file a habeas corpus petition in federal court. For sample habeas forms, and a self-help manual on how to file a habeas petition, call or write the PAIR Project.
However, if you have been convicted of these types of crimes but you finished serving your criminal sentence before October 9, 1998, you can still seek a bond.