Quick Guide to Release from Immigration Detention for SIJS Youth

“IMPORTANT: On February 6, 2026, the Fifth Circuit ruled in Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi, No. 25-20496, that noncitizens in removal proceedings who have not been admitted are subject to “mandatory” detention under 8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(2)(A). This resource has not been updated since the Buenrostro decision. If you are filing a habeas petition in a district within the Fifth Circuit, you will need to adapt your legal claims in light of the Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi decision, e.g. by focusing on constitutional rather than statutory claims.”

“Less than a year into the second Trump administration, we have seen a drastic expansion of immigration enforcement and detention, with new agency policies reversing decades of precedent to conclude that all noncitizens in removal proceedings who were not “admitted” into the United States are subject to mandatory, no-bond detention. These policies harm noncitizens indiscriminately regardless of their longstanding ties to the United States or entitlement to humanitarian protections under U.S. law.

Young people approved for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), including those previously processed by the U.S. government as unaccompanied children, are among those harmed by the new mandatory detention policies. The National Immigration Project and the End SIJS Backlog Coalition have seen a dramatic rise in detentions of SIJS beneficiaries 18 years of age or older. These detentions often occur after an unlawful arrest lacking probable cause, and in spite of the youth’s lack of criminal history and, in many cases, prior release from custody as an unaccompanied child. For SIJS beneficiaries, who must wait for years in a visa backlog until they are eligible to apply for permanent resident status, detention often means swift removal, and removal cuts off their access to permanent status in the United States—the core purpose of the SIJS statute. Thus, securing SIJS beneficiaries’ release from immigration detention is essential to protect their ability to fulfill the congressional purpose behind SIJS—to remain safely in the United States until they are able to seek permanent resident status. Given the administration’s new mandatory detention policies, often the only meaningful avenue to release for these young people is through filing a habeas petition in federal court.

This resource is intended as a “quick guide” to help attorneys identify potential habeas arguments and strategies for securing SIJS clients’ release from immigration detention. It does not comprehensively describe such arguments and strategies but is rather intended as a starting point, providing links to other resources where available. It is intended for those representing SIJS beneficiaries who are 18 years of age or older; it does not cover special protections that apply to minors in detention.”