Timeline of immigration enforcement in the United States

This page provides a timeline of key events related to immigration enforcement in the United States. The focus is on enforcement activities such as those carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, specifically the United States Border Patrol.

The following are not covered here: processing of entry of people at ports of entry (carried out by the CBP Office of Field Operations), laws and policies affecting visa processing and processing of immigrant and non-immgrant statuses within the United States (carried out by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs and the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services). However, exceptions are made when these actions tie in directly with immigration enforcement actions (e.g., in cases where some groups are being protected from immigration enforcement, or databases are set up to allow cooperation between these agencies and enforcement agencies).

Laws and programs that prevent aliens (unauthorized, or others) from accessing general public services or private employment or community participation opportunities are also included here.