U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement data sharing sparks arrests of children and sponsors

Internal government data reviewed by Reuters show that the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) has provided more than 460,000 information leads to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) since January 2025. The leads concern unaccompanied migrant children, their sponsors and other household members, making them vulnerable to detention and deportation.

The policy shift has led to the arrest of over 12,000 people, including a 6‑year‑old girl and her mother who were reunited after months in a shelter only to be detained and placed in a Texas family detention center. A 2008 law that required the least restrictive setting for such children has been effectively overturned under the Trump administration. Former ORR deputy director Jen Smyers said safeguards were “completely reversed,” describing the practice as "weaponizing a child‑welfare program for the purposes of more deportations." ORR maintains it "plays no role in the apprehension of children."