What are the main responsibilities of ICE agents today?

1. Enforcement on the ground: arrests, detentions and removals

ICE officers and agents carry out arrests of noncitizens who allegedly violate immigration law, manage detention facilities and execute deportation (removal) operations; job listings for deportation officers cite duties that include initiating criminal and civil prosecutions and deporting noncitizens as part of custodial operations ^[3]. Multiple career‑advice and job‑description sources summarize the day‑to‑day work as field operations and arresting or removing people found to violate immigration statutes ^{[1] [7]}.

2. Criminal investigations and national‑security work

Special agents in ICE’s investigative components conduct complex criminal investigations that can span countries and target crimes that affect U.S. citizens: money laundering, human trafficking, illegal arms export, identity fraud, terrorism, drug smuggling and child exploitation are all within that portfolio ^{[2] [7]}. These investigative duties distinguish criminal investigators/special agents from detention and removal officers, and they frequently involve evidence collection and collaboration with U.S. attorneys and other agencies ^{[2] [3]}.

3. Worksite enforcement, employer audits and compliance efforts

ICE also runs worksite enforcement and employer‑compliance programs aimed at identifying unauthorized workers and penalizing employers who hire them; one practice cited in historical coverage included auditing thousands of companies and levying fines to drive compliance ^[8]. Guidance and outreach to employers appear alongside enforcement as part of ICE’s stated toolbox to reduce illegal employment ^[8].

4. Interagency cooperation and varied assignments nationwide

ICE operates across hundreds of offices and often works with the FBI, CBP, Border Patrol and local law enforcement on joint operations; agents may be tasked with border‑adjacent duties, customs inspections, or domestic surveillance depending on assignment ^{[7] [9]}. Job descriptions emphasize diverse environments and specialized roles — ICE is not monolithic: components, ranks and specialties determine whether an employee focuses on arrests, detention management, or transnational investigations ^{[1] [6]}.

5. Training, authority and the paperwork of prosecutions

Hiring and training descriptions make clear that ICE personnel receive law‑enforcement training — including immigration law, firearms and investigative techniques — and that substantial casework involves determining legal sufficiency, preparing subpoenas and presenting cases for prosecution ^{[3] [4]}. Official recruitment and academy materials frame ICE duties in terms of protecting national security and public safety ^[4].

6. Technology and identification — changing tools, raising questions

Reporting and encyclopedic summaries note that ICE has adopted field tools such as facial‑recognition apps (for example, a "Mobile Fortify App" reported in 2025) and other technological means to identify people in the field, a change with operational benefits and civil‑liberties implications ^[5]. This adoption of tech is part of broader modernization that also shifts public conversations about surveillance and accuracy ^[5].

7. Accountability, public backlash and differing narratives

Contemporary reporting records starkly different narratives: ICE and some mainstream job/guidance sources present agents as law‑enforcement professionals protecting borders and public safety ^{[4] [1]}, while critics and watchdog reporting document accusations of secrecy, aggressive tactics, militarization, use of unmarked vehicles and mask‑wearing, and concerns about diminished oversight that have spurred protests and court findings of profiling in some instances ^{[5] [10]}. Activist sites emphasize ICE’s role in detention and removal as part of a system of harm, stressing discretionary choices about who is targeted ^[6].

8. Confusion, impersonation risks and community trust

The FBI and other reporting warn that criminals sometimes impersonate ICE, and public skepticism has been amplified by instances of masked, plainclothes or unmarked‑vehicle operations; the FBI urged agencies to have officers prove their identity and run outreach to counter impersonations and rebuild trust ^[11]. Media stories about agents not always immediately identifying themselves (and viral social‑media clips) have fueled public concern and calls for clearer identification protocols ^{[12] [11]}.

9. What sources do and do not say

The assembled sources outline ICE’s main functional responsibilities — arrests/removals, detention oversight, criminal investigations, worksite enforcement, interagency cooperation, and use of technology — and they report both official rationales and strong critiques of tactics and accountability ^{[1] [2] [3] [5]}. Available sources do not mention any single, unified list of "priority" individuals or a standardized public‑facing rule set that reconciles competing enforcement priorities in all jurisdictions; instead, reporting and job postings show role variation by component and political context ^{[6] [3]}.

Closing note: If you want a more granular breakdown (typical daily tasks for an ERO detention officer vs. an HSI special agent, or official ICE policy documents on use of force or identification), I can pull those distinctions from specific ICE guidance and court rulings — let me know which component you want examined further.