8th. June, 2025.
Immigration Department. USA. The Trump administration has launched a sweeping campaign targeting migrant children already residing in the United States, separating many from their families and placing them in federal custody. The move is part of a broader effort to overhaul immigration enforcement and crack down on what officials claim is a failure by previous administrations to account for thousands of unaccompanied minors.
Since President Trump returned to office, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), supported by the FBI, has conducted hundreds of so-called welfare checks at the homes of migrant children. These visits have resulted in over 500 children being taken into the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), a federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Officials claim the actions are aimed at protecting children from unsafe conditions or exploitation. However, advocates and former HHS officials argue that the real intent is immigration enforcement, not child welfare.
New policies under the Trump administration have significantly increased the difficulty for sponsors—typically parents or family members—to retrieve children from federal custody. Additional requirements, such as income documentation, DNA testing, and stringent ID verification, have made it “almost impossible” for some families to reclaim children, especially undocumented ones.
Legal experts warn that these guidelines not only prolong children’s detention but may also fast-track their deportation. The average length of stay in ORR custody has soared from 67 days in December 2024 to 170 days in April 2025.
Sources within the HHS confirm the creation of a centralised “war room” in Washington, DC, where officials from multiple agencies, including ICE, have access to ORR’s sensitive data. This includes children’s asylum claims, medical histories, and placement details—information historically protected from enforcement purposes.
This unprecedented data sharing has drawn criticism from child welfare advocates and legal experts who argue it undermines the mission of ORR, which since the George W Bush era has been focused on placing children in the least restrictive and safest settings.
Reports have surfaced of immigration enforcement officers arriving unannounced at children’s homes, asking invasive questions unrelated to their welfare. In some instances, children have been re-detained after routine encounters with law enforcement or immigration offices. Advocates warn that these check-ins may evolve into broader efforts to detain sponsors and rapidly return children to ORR custody.
Experts argue that such an approach bypasses existing post-release services, which already monitor children’s welfare through trained case workers and community services.
A lawsuit recently filed against the administration argues that the cumulative effect of new policies has led to the unnecessary separation of children from loving families. In one example, two brothers in foster care have remained in custody for months because their mother couldn’t meet new document requirements.
Critics contend that the administration’s claim of restoring “integrity” to the system is masking a strategy designed to deter migration by making family reunification more difficult and distressing for children.
Officials claim the actions are aimed at protecting children from unsafe conditions or exploitation. However, advocates and former HHS officials argue that the real intent is immigration enforcement, not child welfare.