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Do ICE agents receive monetary bonuses or piece-rate pay for each immigrant they detain?
Executive summary
Available reporting shows ICE has offered large signing bonuses (up to about $45,000–$50,000) to recruit new agents, and in mid‑2025 the agency briefly circulated — then withdrew — a short-lived internal pilot that would have paid cash incentives tied to speeding removals; ICE also explored contractor “monetary bonuses” for locating targets. Reporting does not show a standing, routine piece‑rate pay system that permanently pays agents per person detained, but it does document bonus programs and solicitations tied to performance that raised concern [1] [2] [3] [4] [5].
1. What reporting says about bonuses for hiring and retention
Multiple outlets report that ICE and DHS promoted substantial signing and retention bonuses to recruit thousands of new agents — figures cited include up to $50,000 in signing bonuses and similar offers [1] [6] [7]. Newsweek and other articles note additional incentives such as overtime, loan‑forgiveness, and potential performance or retention bonuses tied to committing extra years of service [8] [2].
2. Limited, controversial pilot tied to speedy deportations — then withdrawn
In August 2025 an internal ICE email circulated a 30‑day pilot offering cash bonuses to agents for quickly deporting people; that email was rescinded within hours and ICE canceled the pilot amid public backlash and legal concerns [3]. Independent summaries and commentary say the memo instructed use of expedited removal to “maximize” bonuses, which prompted rapid withdrawal and scrutiny [3] [5].
3. No evidence in these sources of permanent piece‑rate pay per person detained
The provided reporting documents signing bonuses and a short‑lived incentive pilot, and it reports solicitations for contractor performance bonuses — but none of the items in the current set of sources describes an established policy of paying ICE agents a continuing, piece‑rate amount for each immigrant they detain. Available sources do not mention a standing piece‑rate pay system for ICE agents [8] [3] [4].
4. Contractors and “monetary bonuses” for locating targets
The Intercept reporting of a procurement document shows ICE considered monetary bonuses for private contractors (so‑called bounty hunters or skip‑tracers) for locating targets, with payments tied to performance metrics like finding addresses or locating a high share of targets within timeframes [4]. That planning for contractor incentives is distinct from regular agent pay but demonstrates the agency explored performance‑based payments in some procurement contexts [4].
5. Why the difference between signing/retention bonuses and piece rates matters
Signing and retention bonuses are common federal hiring incentives and are paid up front or upon meeting a service commitment; they are not payments tied to individual enforcement actions [8] [1]. By contrast, paying per deportation or per detention would create clear incentives linked directly to enforcement volume; the withdrawn pilot and contractor solicitations triggered ethical and legal concerns precisely because they stepped closer to that model [3] [4].
6. Competing viewpoints and implicit agendas in the coverage
Proponents frame large bonuses as necessary to staff a rapidly expanded enforcement mission and to clear backlogs, emphasizing overtime and recruitment needs funded by major budget increases [6] [2]. Critics and civil‑rights advocates warned that bonuses tied to removals could encourage rushed decisions, undermine due process, and create perverse incentives; the immediate cancellation of the pilot after public outcry shows how politically and legally sensitive such incentives are [3] [5].
7. Limits of the available reporting and open questions
The sources document proposals, solicitations, and a rescinded pilot through mid‑ to late‑2025, but they do not provide comprehensive official pay schedules or federal personnel guidance that would definitively rule in or out other incentive schemes in specific offices or future policies; available sources do not mention a permanent piece‑rate pay system for ICE agents [8] [3] [4]. It remains possible further internal memoranda or later policies exist outside these reports.
8. Bottom line for someone weighing the claim
If the claim is that ICE routinely pays agents a per‑person monetary bonus every time they detain someone, current reporting does not support that. If the claim is that ICE has used and contemplated monetary incentives — including large hiring bonuses, a briefly proposed cash bonus pilot for speedy deportations, and contractor performance bonuses — those claims are supported by multiple reports and the rapid cancellation of the deportation bonus pilot underscores the controversy and sensitivity of such programs [1] [8] [3] [4] [5].