Federal deportation efforts: Implications for state child support agencies

Child support payments stop abruptly. A noncustodial parent disappears from locate data. There’s a no-show at court. A custodial parent asks to close the case. The parents stop responding to messages. An employer reports that its employee has been picked up by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).¹

These are just some of the indications that parents in the child support caseload could have been affected by current federal immigration policies. New issues are likely to arise for child support agencies because federal efforts to remove noncitizens are likely increasing the number of noncitizens with child support orders who have been or will be arrested, detained, or deported. How should a child support agency respond to these developments?

In this article, we provide background on key immigration trends that may be relevant to child support agencies and then offer recommendations for actions that agencies should consider. It is incumbent on child support agencies to “become aware of the issues and understand the consequences,” says Christina Mahoney, deputy attorney general, Child Support Enforcement Division of the Illinois Attorney General’s Office. “Even though a noncustodial parent is detained or deported, the child support order does not automatically stop because the obligor has been detained or deported. Unless the agency takes proactive steps, the meter will keep ticking”—potentially resulting in mounting debt for the noncustodial parent and declining performance numbers for the agency.

Who is being detained or deported?

We have been unable to identify any research on how many noncustodial parents are experiencing or at risk of detention or deportation.² However, there is good reason to believe that the number of affected noncustodial parents has grown in 2025 and 2026. This is because there has been a large increase in the overall number of people arrested and detained; most of those detained are being arrested in the interior of the country; and the population at risk of deportation has substantially expanded.

The number of ICE arrests leading to detention more than quadrupled in 2026, as compared with the last six months of 2024.³ As of July 11, 2026, 65,765 persons were in ICE detention, compared with 39,238 on January 26, 2025.⁴ Nearly 90% of people currently in detention were arrested in the interior of the country rather than as a result of a recent border crossing,⁵ so they are likely to have been in the country for a longer period of time.⁶ Of people arrested and detained by ICE, most have no criminal conviction, and only a small number have a conviction for a violent offense.⁷ In July 2026, 90% of those arrested and detained by ICE were men.⁸

In addition, the federal government has taken actions that increase the number of noncitizens at risk of arrest and deportation by removing legal protections such as Temporary Protected Status and humanitarian parole.⁹ The government also has expanded enforcement against people who apply for green cards or pursue legal relief.¹⁰ At the same time, people with pending applications for lawful permanent residence—including spouses of U.S. citizens—are now susceptible to arrest at interviews with ICE and at appearances in immigration court.¹¹

Deportation timelines

Most people who enter ICE detention are deported in their initial months in detention. Of those entering detention after an ICE arrest in January 2026, 46% were removed within 30 days and 69% within 90 days; only 15% were still in detention at the 90-day point.¹² Third-country deportations have become more common. Since early 2025, the U.S. has deported more than 23,000 people to 26 third countries, most commonly Mexico, according to media accounts.¹³

The current flow of detention to deportation for noncitizen parents presents new issues and challenges for child support agencies. Most of those who are entering detention are likely to be there for short periods of time, and, when detained, are likely to be quickly deported. For example, a caseworker may need to determine why a noncustodial parent can no longer be located. One possibility is that the parent is a noncitizen who has quit a job and is avoiding interaction with the child support agency, the court, and other government systems out of fear. Or it may be that the parent has been detained or deported. A caseworker attempting to locate a noncitizen parent may have a difficult time confirming whether the parent has been detained or deported, predicting how long detention will last, and anticipating whether the parent will depart the country. This uncertainty makes it more difficult to determine the next steps to take in the case.

What the child support agency can do

Consequently, child support agencies may need to take action with less than a full picture of the circumstances. If the child support agency can no longer locate a noncitizen noncustodial parent (especially if that parent has been a reliable payor) or learns that a parent is in detention or deportation proceedings, the agency should, as a matter of standard practice, promptly assess whether review, suspension, or modification of the order is appropriate and whether to evaluate the case for closure. If custodial parents, other relatives, employers, community members, or advocates do not contact the child support agency with more information, the agency should reach out (consistent with confidentiality rules) when possible.

Mahoney recommends two databases that may help locate parents detained by ICE or Customs and Border Protection (CBP).¹⁴ The first is the ICE Online Detainee Locator System, which is used to locate a parent who is currently in ICE custody or in CBP custody for more than 48 hours. This database was recently expanded to allow for searches by name, date of birth, and country of birth, as well as by the person’s Alien Registration Number (“A-number”).¹⁵ The second database, the Automated Case Information System (ACIS), is operated by the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) and provides basic status information in cases pending before an immigration court or the Board of Immigration Appeals. ACIS requires an A-number and nationality to conduct a search.¹⁶ Because neither system necessarily provides a complete picture of a parent’s circumstances, Mahoney recommends treating the information as a starting point for further case assessment, rather than as a substitute for individualized review.

Recent reporting indicates that under a new ICE policy, people held at ICE detention centers with final orders of removal will no longer be listed in the Online Detainee Locator System.¹⁷ This new policy has been sharply criticized, but child support agencies should keep in mind that unless the policy is revised, the Online Detainee Locator System may no longer be a source of locate information for detainees with final orders of removal.

The agency should try to quickly communicate with the custodial parent to gather more information, provide information, and discuss the custodial parent’s concerns, preferences, and options, including the possibility of international enforcement if the noncustodial parent is removed or voluntarily departs the country. Mahoney advises: “Child support workers should explain to custodial parents the options that may be available in their case, including requesting modification of the order, and where permitted, requesting case closure or addressing arrears directly owed to them. They should also explain the confidentiality protections applicable to information provided to the child support agency.”¹⁸

If detained, a noncitizen parent is likely to lose employment and experience a severely reduced ability to pay child support for the foreseeable future. Even if released relatively quickly and not deported, a noncustodial parent may face barriers to reemployment and a compromised earning capacity. Arrears will begin to accumulate unless the order is promptly suspended or modified. Support obligations, which are based on a noncustodial parent’s ability to pay them under state child support guidelines, are subject to modification when the parent’s circumstances substantially change.¹⁹

As soon as it learns of the detention, the agency should promptly assess the case and determine whether to initiate a suspension of the obligation. Alternatively, the agency might conduct a modification review. The agency may need to obtain a parent’s consent to modify the order.²⁰ Child support agencies might consider reaching out to immigrant advocacy organizations and asking them to include in their family preparedness planning documents a modification request and a power of attorney form that a parent can complete and sign in advance to authorize a representative (such as a relative, friend, employer, or advocate) to request an order review on the noncustodial parent’s behalf if the parent is detained.²¹

If the child support agency learns that the noncustodial parent has been removed or has voluntarily departed the country, the agency should promptly assess whether the case might be enforced as an international case or closed. 45 C.F.R.§ 302.33(a)(1) and (5) require the state to provide all appropriate child support services to any individual who files an application. When a noncustodial parent is no longer in the country, the child support agency needs to determine whether the case can be enforced under the Hague Convention on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance (“Hague Convention”), bilateral agreements that provide for reciprocity across international borders, or another jurisdictional basis.²²

The child support agency should also determine whether the case can be closed under case closure rules. The custodial parent may simply decide to close the case, unless the family currently receives TANF cash assistance or other support is assigned to the state.²³ Another basis for case closure is when the “noncustodial parent is a citizen of, and lives in, a foreign country, does not work for the Federal government or a company with headquarters or offices in the United States, and has no reachable domestic income or assets; and there is no Federal or State treaty or reciprocity with the country.”²⁴ When a parent has been deported to a third country where the parent is not a citizen, however, this specific case closure provision would not apply. A few other potential grounds for case closure include the following: (1) there is no longer a current support order, and arrearages are under $500 or unenforceable understate law; (2) there is no longer a current support order and all arrears are assigned to the state; and (3) the noncustodial parent’s location is unknown, and the state has made diligent locate efforts over specified periods of time.²⁵

To respond more effectively to these emerging issues, Mahoney recommends that child support agencies educate themselves on immigration issues, put clear protocols in place, determine a course of action when a parent is affected by immigration enforcement, and implement a case tickler or task system. Child support agencies should train case managers and develop specialized expertise within their intergovernmental units. They also should consider reaching out to state and local agencies and advocacy groups serving immigrant families. “Don’t let the cases simply drift,” Mahoney advises.