Amidst the wave of deportations ordered by President Donald Trump for illegal immigrants in the United States, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) can apply an accelerated expulsion to certain groups of undocumented individuals.
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Normally, after an immigrant is detained for deportation, a whole process takes place before an immigration judge with hearings to determine whether they qualify to be repatriated to their home country or not.
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However, with expedited removal or deportation, ICE can apply deportation quickly, without any kind of hearing. The website of the lawyers from National Immigration Law Center explains that "this process is mainly used for those who have not been in the country for long or who do not have a strong legal basis to remain in the country“.
Generally, expedited removal is not appealable and prevents re-entry to the United States for five years.
According to the Department of Homeland Security of the United States, in the first month of President Trump’s administration, 37,660 immigrants were deported, but it is unknown how many of these were due to deportation or expedited removal.
A report from Witness at the Border revealed that the main countries where the United States deports individuals to are Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. They are followed by Mexico, Colombia, and Ecuador. Finally, African nations such as Mauritania, Kenya, and Cameroon, as well as India, are also destinations for deportations.
Characteristics of immigrants who qualify for expedited removal
According to the National Immigration Law Center, ICE can apply expedited removal to individuals apprehended at the border, during an immigration enforcement operation, or in a detention center.
Among the immigrants who qualify for expedited removal in the United States are:
-Those who do not have valid documents.
-Persons without legal authorization to be in the country.
-Those who cannot demonstrate continuous presence in the United States for at least two years.
-Those with the highest likelihood of expedited removal or deportation are those detained near the border, because they haven’t fully entered the United States yet, and the government wants to prevent them from staying without permits.
-Those with criminal records who are being processed for a migration offense. This group is also one of the most likely to face expedited deportation.