Situation card · Know your rights
Stopped by ICE in public or at work: your rights
What to say and do if immigration agents stop you on the street, at work, or at a checkpoint, whatever your immigration status.
The 10-second version: say this
Diga o muestre la frase en inglés. Debajo está lo que significa. Traducción de Hope for Americans.
- Am I being detained, or am I free to leave?¿Me están deteniendo o puedo irme?
- I am exercising my right to remain silent.Ejerzo mi derecho a guardar silencio.
- I do not consent to a search.No doy mi consentimiento para un registro.
- I want to speak to a lawyer.Quiero hablar con un abogado.
If you are free to leave, walk away calmly. Do not run.Si puede irse, aléjese con calma. No corra.
Do
- Stay calm and keep your hands visible.
- Ask if you are free to leave.
- Carry a lawyer's phone number.
- Write down names, badge numbers, and what happened.
Don't
- Don't run or physically resist.
- Don't lie or show false documents.
- Don't sign anything without a lawyer.
- Don't argue, even if a stop seems unfair.
Practice saying it
Saying it out loud a few times makes it easier to remember under stress. Nothing is saved.
Am I being detained, or am I free to leave?
I am exercising my right to remain silent.
I do not consent to a search.
I want to speak to a lawyer.
These rights apply to everyone
- The Fifth Amendment protects every "person," not only citizens.
- You have the right to remain silent, whatever your immigration status.
- See Rights for everyone for which rights cover everyone and which are for citizens only.
If agents stop you in public
- Ask: "Am I being detained, or am I free to leave?"
- If they say you are free to leave, walk away calmly.
- You can refuse to answer questions about where you were born, your immigration status, or how you entered the U.S.
- In some states, you must give your name if asked. You can stay silent about everything else.
- You can say no to a search of you or your things. Agents may pat you down if they think you have a weapon.
- Do not run. Running can make agents more likely to detain you.
Papers and documents
- If you are 18 or older and have valid immigration papers, federal law generally requires you to carry them.
- If you have them, you can show them when asked.
- If you do not have valid papers, you can stay silent. You can refuse to show documents that say what country you are from.
- Never show false documents. Never say you are a U.S. citizen if you are not. Both can be crimes and can lead to deportation.
If agents come to your workplace
- Agents can enter areas that are open to the public, like a lobby or a store floor.
- To enter private areas, like a back office or a kitchen, they generally need a judicial warrant or your employer's consent.
- Your rights stay the same at work. You can stay silent and ask for a lawyer.
- Do not run, and do not hide. Stay calm.
- Do not sign anything without talking to a lawyer first.
At a Border Patrol checkpoint
- Border Patrol runs fixed checkpoints on some roads near the border.
- Agents can stop every car briefly and ask about citizenship, even without suspicion. The Supreme Court allowed this in United States v. Martinez-Fuerte (1976).
- To search your car, they generally need your consent or probable cause.
- You can stay silent. The stop may take longer if you do.
Still being decided
- A lower court had barred immigration stops in Los Angeles based only on apparent ethnicity, language, type of job, or location.
- In Noem v. Vasquez Perdomo (2025), the Supreme Court paused that order while the case goes on. It did not decide the case.
- Your right to stay silent and to refuse a search did not change.
If you are arrested
- Say: "I am exercising my right to remain silent. I want to speak to a lawyer."
- Do not sign papers you do not understand.
- See If you or a family member is detained.
Common questions
Do I have to answer ICE questions in public?
Generally, no. You have the right to remain silent, whatever your immigration status. In some states, you must give your name if asked. Do not lie, because lying to a federal agent can be a crime.
Can ICE come into my workplace?
Agents can enter areas open to the public, like a lobby or a store floor. To enter private areas, like a back office or a kitchen, they generally need a judicial warrant or the employer's consent.
Do I have to show ICE my papers?
If you are 18 or older and have valid immigration papers, federal law generally requires you to carry them and show them if asked. If you do not have valid papers, you can stay silent. Never show false documents.
What happens at a Border Patrol checkpoint?
Agents can stop every car briefly and ask about citizenship, even without suspicion. In United States v. Martinez-Fuerte (1976), the Supreme Court allowed this. To search your car, they generally need your consent or probable cause.
The law you are citing
Fourth Amendment (1791): The government cannot search you or your things unreasonably.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated
Fifth Amendment (1791): You cannot be forced to be a witness against yourself. No person can lose their liberty without due process.
nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law
Fourteenth Amendment (1868): States must give every person due process and equal protection of the laws.
nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Get help
- Find free or low-cost immigration legal helpNational Immigration Legal Services Directory
- If someone is detainedWhat to do and how to find them