Reports of Migrant Spouses Arrested During Green Card Interviews

Arrests during Green Card interview

Couples face unexpected separations

Growing concern among attorneys

The couples arrived last week at a federal building in San Diego for their permanent resident card — or green card — interviews, convinced this would be the final step in securing their future together in the United States.

In each couple, one spouse was a U.S. citizen.

Stephen Paul arrived with his British wife and their 4-month-old baby.

Detentions During Green Card Interviews

For Spouses of U.S. Citizens, Green Card Interviews End in Handcuffs. A story that embarrasses me as an American. The New York Times https://t.co/uT4oHGZVvr

— Michael Powell (@powellAtlantic) November 27, 2025

Audrey Hestmark attended with her German husband, just days before their first wedding anniversary.

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Jason Cordero arrived with his Mexican wife to complete the process, according to The New York Times.

What they expected to be a celebratory moment became a traumatic experience when, at the end of each interview with an immigration officer, federal agents rushed in, handcuffed the foreign spouse, and took them into custody.

Testimonies From a Day Marked by Uncertainty

Green card interview arrests on the rise – Photo: Shutterstock

“I had to take our baby out of my wife’s arms as she cried,” said Paul, 33, recalling the moment agents informed him that they would detain his wife, Katie.

Katie Paul was taken to a migrant detention center, where hundreds of people affected by the Trump administration’s hard-line policies are being held.

Her husband had to request leave from his job at the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department to care for their child and seek Katie’s release.

“It’s insane that they’re separating our family,” Paul said. “Whoever is running this has completely lost touch with their mission in the country.”

In recent weeks, immigration lawyers in different cities have reported an increase in the detentions of foreign spouses of U.S. citizens during interviews at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services offices.

In San Diego alone, regional attorneys estimate that several dozen foreign-born spouses have been detained since November 12, when this new tactic was first detected.

The estimate, according to immigration attorney Andrew Nietor, former president of the local chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, comes from colleagues sharing information about their clients’ cases.

The exact number remains unknown, as many couples attend appointments without legal representation, making incidents harder to track or share. The government has also not released any official figures on these detentions.

The Official Reasons Behind the New Tactic

In every foreign spouse detention case, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents informed applicants that they had overstayed their tourist or business visas.

A detention order reviewed by The New York Times states that “there is probable cause to believe” that the spouse in question is “removable from the United States.”

Matthew Tragesser, a spokesperson for the agency, said that arrests at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services offices may be carried out if individuals are identified as having outstanding detainers, being subject to removal orders issued by a court, or having committed fraud, crimes, or other violations of immigration law.

Tragesser noted that such actions are typically carried out by ICE agents.