Regardless of your immigration status, y'all have guaranteed rights under the Constitution. Learn more here near your rights every bit an immigrant, and how to express them.

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Woman and child in an immigration rally.

Law enforcement asks about my immigration condition

How to reduce chance to yourself

  • Stay at-home. Don't run, argue, resist, or obstruct the officer, even if you believe your rights are being violated. Go on your hands where police can see them.
  • Don't lie virtually your condition or provide simulated documents.

Your rights

  • Yous take the correct to remain silent and do non take to hash out your immigration or citizenship status with police, immigration agents, or other officials. Annihilation you lot tell an officer can afterward be used against you in clearing court.
  • If you are non a U.Due south. citizen and an immigration amanuensis requests your immigration papers, you lot must show them if you have them with you.
  • If an immigration agent asks if they tin search yous, you lot accept the right to say no. Agents practice non have the right to search yous or your belongings without your consent or likely cause.
  • If y'all're over 18, deport your papers with you at all times. If y'all don't have them, tell the officer that you want to remain silent, or that you lot desire to consult a lawyer earlier answering whatsoever questions.

What to do in such an encounter

  • In some states, you must provide your name to law enforcement if y'all are stopped and told to place yourself. Simply even if you requite your name, you don't take to answer other questions.
  • If you are driving and are pulled over, the officer can crave you to prove your license, vehicle registration and proof of insurance, just you don't have to reply questions about your immigration status.
  • Customs officers tin ask about your clearing status when inbound or leaving the country. If you are a lawful permanent resident (LPR) who has maintained your condition, you only accept to answer questions establishing your identity and permanent residency. Refusal to answer other questions will likely cause filibuster, just officials may not deny you entry into the United States for failure to reply other questions. If you are a not-denizen visa holder, you may be denied entry into the U.S. if y'all reject to reply officers' questions.

Boosted resources

  • If you need more information, contact your local ACLU affiliate.
  • National Immigration Police Centre: Know Your Rights
  • A Toolkit for Organizations Responding to Mass Worksite Immigration Raids
  • Immigrant Legal Resource Center
  • American Clearing Lawyers Association
  • ACLU VIDEO: What to do if stopped by police or Ice

In other languages

  • (Standard arabic) العَرَبِيَّة‎
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  • Español (Spanish)
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  • (Urdu) اُردُو‎
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  • (Simplified Chinese) 简体中文

I've been stopped by police or Ice

How to reduce risk to yourself

  • Stay calm and do non resist or obstruct the agents or officers.
  • Do non lie or give fake documents.
  • Set up yourself and your family in case you are arrested. Memorize the phone numbers of your family and your lawyer. Brand emergency plans if you have children or take medication.

Your rights

  • Yous have the right to remain silent. If you wish to do that right, say so out loud. (In some states, you may be required to provide your name if asked to identify yourself.)
  • You lot do not have to consent to a search of yourself or your property, but constabulary may pat down your clothing if they suspect a weapon.
  • If yous are arrested by constabulary, you lot have the right to a regime-appointed lawyer.
  • If you are detained by Ice, you take the correct to consult with a lawyer, but the government is not required to provide one for you lot. You can enquire for a listing of free or low-price alternatives.
  • You practise non have to reply questions about where y'all were born, whether you are a U.South. denizen, or how you entered the country. (Split rules utilise at international borders and airports, and for individuals on certain nonimmigrant visas, including tourists and business travelers.)

What to do if you are arrested or detained

  • Say you wish to remain silent and enquire for a lawyer immediately. Don't give any explanations or excuses. Don't say anything, sign anything, or make whatever decisions without a lawyer.
  • If you have been arrested by police, you have the right to brand a local phone telephone call. The law cannot listen if y'all call a lawyer.
  • If you have been detained by ICE, you take the right to contact your consulate or have an officer inform the consulate of your detention.
  • Remember your immigration number ("A" number) and give information technology to your family unit. Information technology will help family unit members locate you.
  • Keep a copy of your immigration documents with someone you trust.
  • If you are a non-denizen: Ask your lawyer about the effect of a criminal conviction or plea on your immigration status. Don't discuss your immigration status with anyone but your lawyer. While you are in jail, an immigration agent may visit y'all. Do not answer questions or sign anything earlier talking to a lawyer. Read all papers fully. If you do non understand or cannot read the papers, tell the officeholder yous need an interpreter.

If y'all believe your rights were violated

  • Write down everything y'all call back, including officers' badges and patrol car numbers, which agency the officers were from, and any other details. Go contact information for witnesses.
  • If you're injured, seek medical attending immediately and take photographs of your injuries.
  • File a written complaint with the agency's internal diplomacy division or noncombatant complaint board. In near cases, you tin file a complaint anonymously if yous wish.

Boosted resources

  • If you need more information, contact your local ACLU affiliate.
  • National Clearing Police Center: Know Your Rights
  • A Toolkit for Organizations Responding to Mass Worksite Clearing Raids
  • Immigrant Legal Resource Center
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association
  • ACLU VIDEO: What to practise if stopped by law or ICE

In other languages

  • (Arabic) العَرَبِيَّة‎‎
  • فارسی (Farsi)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • (Urdu) اُردُو‎

Police or Water ice are at my dwelling house

How to reduce take chances to yourself

  • Stay calm and keep the door closed. Opening the door does not give them permission to come inside, but it is safer to speak to Ice through the door.

Your rights

  • Yous have the correct to remain silent, even if officer has a warrant.
  • You exercise not have to let police or immigration agents into your abode unless they have certain kinds of warrants.
  • If law have an abort warrant, they are legally allowed to enter the habitation of the person on the warrant if they believe that person is inside. But a warrant of removal/deportation (Course I-205) does not let officers to enter a habitation without consent.

What to practice when the police or ICE make it

  • Ask if they are immigration agents and what they are there for.
  • Enquire the agent or officeholder to show yous a bluecoat or identification through the window or peephole.
  • Ask if they have a warrant signed by a judge. If they say they do, ask them to slide it under the door or concur it upwards to a window so you can audit it.
  • Don't lie or produce whatever faux documents. Don't sign annihilation without speaking with a lawyer first.
  • Do not open your door unless Ice shows you a judicial search or arrest warrant naming a person in your residence and/or areas to be searched at your address. If they don't produce a warrant, keep the door closed. State: "I exercise not consent to your entry."
  • If agents force their way in, do not resist. If you wish to practice your rights, state: "I exercise not consent to your entry or to your search of these premises. I am exercising my right to remain silent. I wish to speak with a lawyer as soon as possible."
  • If y'all are on probation with a search condition, law enforcement is allowed to enter your home.

Additional resource

  • If you need more data, contact your local ACLU chapter.
  • National Immigration Police Center: Know Your Rights
  • A Toolkit for Organizations Responding to Mass Worksite Immigration Raids
  • Immigrant Legal Resource Middle
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association

I need a lawyer

Your rights

  • If you are arrested by the police, y'all have the correct to a regime-appointed lawyer, and should ask for one immediately.
  • If arrested, you lot have the right to a private phone phone call inside a reasonable time of your abort, and police may not listen to the telephone call if it is made to a lawyer.
  • If y'all are detained by Water ice or Border Patrol, you have the right to hire a lawyer, simply the government does non have to provide one for yous. Ask for a list of free or depression-cost alternatives.
  • If y'all are detained, you lot have the right to call a lawyer or your family, and you take the right to be visited by a lawyer in detention. You have the right to have your chaser with you at any hearing before an immigration judge.

Additional resources

  • If you lot need more data, contact your local ACLU affiliate.
  • Here is a listing of contact information for legal organizations that assist immigrants.

I've been detained well-nigh the border past Border Patrol

How to reduce chance to yourself

  • Stay at-home when interacting with immigration officials. Do non lie or provide false documents.
  • Never flee from an clearing checkpoint.

Your rights

  • You take the correct to remain silent. You lot tin can also tell the amanuensis that you'll only reply questions in the presence of an chaser, no matter your citizenship or clearing status.
  • Y'all practice not accept to respond questions about your clearing status. A limited exception exists for people who have permission to be in the U.South. for a specific reason and for a limited amount of time (a "nonimmigrant" on a visa, for instance). These individuals are required to provide information near their immigration status if asked.
  • Generally, a Border Patrol agent cannot detain you unless they take "reasonable suspicion"  that you are committing or committed a violation of immigration law or federal constabulary.
  • An clearing officeholder cannot abort y'all without "probable cause." That means the agent must have facts about yous that brand information technology probable that you are committing, or committed, a violation of immigration police force or federal law.
  • At immigration checkpoints, agents exercise non need whatever suspicion to stop you and ask you lot questions, simply their questions should exist cursory and related to verifying immigration status. They can also visually inspect your vehicle.

What to expect

  • People who have entered the U.S. without inspection by an immigration official may be field of study to expedited removal from the U.Southward. based on certain criteria. If you are told that y'all are bailiwick to expedited removal, ask for the stated reason. Also, if you fright persecution if returned to your country of origin, you lot should immediately inform the agents of your fear.
  • At edge crossings, federal authorities exercise not need a warrant or even suspicion of wrongdoing to justify conducting what courts take called a "routine search," such as searching luggage or a vehicle.
  • If an agent asks you for documents, what you need to provide differs depending on your immigration status. U.Due south. citizens do not accept to acquit proof of citizenship if they are in the U.South. If you have valid immigration documents and are over the age of 18, the police requires that you to carry those documents with yous. If you lot are asked by an immigration agent to produce them, show them to the agent. If y'all are an immigrant without documents, you can decline the officer's request, although an agent may then ask you more questions.

Additional resources

  • If you lot need more information, contact your local ACLU chapter.
  • National Immigration Constabulary Middle: Know Your Rights
  • A Toolkit for Organizations Responding to Mass Worksite Clearing Raids
  • Immigrant Legal Resource Center
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association

I was stopped by police, Ice, or Edge Patrol while in transit

How to reduce risk to yourself

  • Stay at-home. Don't run, argue, or obstruct the officer or amanuensis. Go along your hands raised where they tin can come across them.
  • If you are in a car, pull over in a prophylactic identify as chop-chop as possible. Turn off the engine, plow on the internal lite, open up the window function style and place your hands on the wheel. Upon request, show police your commuter's license, registration, and proof of insurance.
  • If you are not a U.Due south. denizen and an immigration agent requests your papers, y'all must show them if you lot have them with you. If you are over xviii, behave your immigration documents with you lot at all times. If you practise not have clearing papers, say you want to remain silent.

Your rights
In a car:

  • Drivers and passengers have the right to remain silent. If you are a passenger, y'all can ask if you are costless to leave. If the officer says yep, calmly leave.
  • If an officer or immigration agent asks to look inside your car, you tin refuse to consent to the search. But if police generally believe that your car contains evidence of a crime, your motorcar can be searched without your consent.
  • In addition to police, Border Patrol conduct "roving patrols" around the interior of the U.S., pulling over motorists. Edge Patrol must take reasonable suspicion that the driver or passengers in the car committed an clearing violation or a federal law-breaking.
  • Any arrest or prolonged terminate by Edge Patrol requires probable crusade. You may ask the agents about the basis for probable cause, and they should tell you. In this state of affairs, both the driver and any passengers take the right to remain silent and non answer questions most their immigration status.

On an airplane:

  • A pilot may reject to fly a rider if he or she reasonably believes that the passenger is a threat to flying safety. A pilot may not, however, question yous or turn down to allow you on a flight because of bias based on your religion, race, national origin, gender, ethnicity, or political beliefs.
  • If you believe y'all are mistakenly on a "no-fly" list, you should review our guidance on No-Fly lists here.

On buses and trains:

  • Border Patrol agents may board buses and trains in the 100-mile border region either at the station or while the bus is on its journeying. More than one officer ordinarily boards the bus, and they volition inquire passengers questions about their immigration status, ask passengers to testify them immigration documents, or both.
  • These questions should be brief and related to verifying 1'south lawful presence in the U.Southward. Yous are not required to answer and can simply say yous practice not wish to practice so. As always, y'all have the right to remain silent.

If you believe your rights were violated

  • Write down everything you remember, including officers' badges and patrol car numbers, which agency the officers were from, and any other details. Get contact information from witnesses.
  • If you're injured, seek medical attention immediately and take photographs of your injuries.
  • File a written complaint with the agency's internal affairs division or civilian complaint board. In almost cases, you can file a complaint anonymously.

Additional resources

  • If you need more information, contact your local ACLU affiliate.
  • National Immigration Law Center: Know Your Rights
  • A Toolkit for Organizations Responding to Mass Worksite Immigration Raids
  • Immigrant Legal Resource Center
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association

I am detained while my immigration example is underway

I've been arrested and need to challenge a displacement order

Your rights

  • Yous have the right to a hearing to challenge a deportation guild, unless you waive your correct to a hearing, sign something called a "Stipulated Removal Lodge," or take "voluntary departure."
  • You lot have the right to an attorney, simply the government does not have to provide ane for you. Enquire for a list of free or low-cost alternatives. If you take no lawyer, ask the court to allow you fourth dimension to find i.

What to do if y'all are arrested

  • If you lot are told that you do non have the right to run into an immigration judge, you lot should speak with a lawyer immediately. There are some cases in which a person might not have a right to see an clearing judge. But even if you are told that is your situation, you should ask to speak to a lawyer immediately considering Immigration officers will non always know or tell you about exceptions might utilize to you lot.
  • If y'all fear persecution or torture in your home state, tell an officer and contact a lawyer immediately. You take additional rights if you have this fearfulness.

Additional resources

  • If you need more information, contact your local ACLU affiliate.
  • National Immigration Police force Middle: Know Your Rights
  • A Toolkit for Organizations Responding to Mass Worksite Immigration Raids
  • Immigrant Legal Resource Center
  • American Clearing Lawyers Association