Fact check: Can ICE deport US citizens with dual citizenship in 2025?

1. Summary of the results

Based on the analyses provided, ICE cannot legally deport US citizens with dual citizenship under current US law. An immigration law expert quoted in the sources states that "there is no provision under US law to allow the government to kick citizens out of the country" ^[1]. However, the reality is more complex than this legal principle suggests.

ICE has a documented history of mistakenly arresting, detaining, and even deporting US citizens as part of its enforcement operations ^[2]. A federal court case involving Peter Sean Brown, a US citizen who was illegally detained by ICE due to incorrect identification as a deportable Jamaican immigrant, demonstrates that ICE can make serious errors in identifying individuals for deportation ^[3]. The court ruled that ICE lacked probable cause and that local authorities could not ignore evidence of Brown's citizenship.

The Trump administration has considered deporting naturalized and US-born citizens accused of "heinous crimes," though this remains legally questionable ^[1]. Additionally, the Supreme Court has allowed the administration to proceed with deporting immigrants to third-party countries not specifically identified in their removal orders ^[4].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original question lacks several crucial pieces of context:

• International comparison: Other countries like Australia have legal mechanisms to strip citizenship from dual citizens who engage in certain conduct, such as terrorism-related activities, through the Australian Citizenship Act ^[5]. This shows that some nations do have legal pathways to remove citizenship from dual nationals.
• Administrative errors vs. legal authority: The sources reveal a critical distinction between ICE's legal authority and its operational mistakes. While ICE cannot legally deport citizens, it has mistakenly done so through identification errors and administrative failures ^{[6] [3]}.
• Voluntary departure scenarios: The complexity of deportation cases is illustrated by instances where family members may choose to accompany deported relatives, creating situations that can be mischaracterized as forced deportation of citizens ^[7].
• Current policy context: The Trump administration's broader immigration enforcement efforts, including mass deportation pledges and restrictions on legal immigration pathways, create an environment where errors affecting citizens become more likely ^{[8] [9]}.

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original question, while straightforward, could potentially be used to spread misinformation in several ways:

• False equivalency: The question might be used to suggest that legal deportation of dual citizens is possible when current US law does not permit this ^[1].
• Omission of enforcement reality: The question doesn't acknowledge that while legal deportation of citizens isn't permitted, ICE has actually detained and deported US citizens through administrative errors ^{[2] [3]}.
• Political timing: The question specifically references 2025, coinciding with Trump administration policies, which could be used to either inflame fears about citizenship rights or to downplay legitimate concerns about enforcement overreach.

The question benefits from being answered with full legal and practical context rather than a simple yes/no response, as the reality involves both legal protections and documented enforcement failures that have affected US citizens.