A Sudden Shift: Green Card Interviews Turning Into Arrest Scenes

Beginning in November 2025, immigration attorneys and families across Southern California began reporting a shocking development: foreign-born spouses attending marriage-based green card interviews were being detained by ICE immediately after the interview. San Diego, in particular, has become the center of this trend, with numerous applicants being handcuffed inside the USCIS Field Office despite having lawful entries, no criminal history, and fully documented bona fide marriages.

Investigative reporting — including national and international media coverage — has confirmed that applicants complying fully with the adjustment process are now facing arrests based solely on visa overstays. In some cases, ICE agents entered interview rooms masked and wearing tactical vests, approaching applicants immediately after routine questioning.

San Diego: The Epicenter of a New Enforcement Pattern  

Local immigration attorneys report unprecedented numbers. One attorney observed 39 arrests on a single day during a week in mid-November, while others estimate that throughout late November 2025, San Diego appeared to be operating with an informal daily target of approximately 25 arrests. Over a span of just four to five days, discussions on the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) local chapter listserv documented 20 to 30 detained marriage-based applicants, all with clean criminal histories and lawful entries.

Although DHS has not publicly confirmed these figures, the steady stream of emergency calls, rapid detention transfers, and urgent bond motions throughout late November 2025 indicates that San Diego had become one of the most aggressive locations in the country for interview-based enforcement.

Spreading Concern: Reports From Other USCIS Field Offices

While San Diego remains the most severely impacted location, similar patterns are emerging elsewhere. Attorneys in San Francisco have reported multiple cases of ICE appearing at or near marriage-based interviews. Outside of California, practitioners in Minneapolis, Atlanta, and Miami have confirmed several detentions as well.

This is not a nationwide policy — yet — but the scattered incidents across multiple jurisdictions indicate that the practice may expand unless checked through litigation or policy intervention. For now, every applicant with a history of overstay should treat their upcoming interview with heightened caution.

What Changed? Not the Law — The Enforcement Strategy

Importantly, the underlying law has not changed. Under longstanding provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act, a spouse who entered the U.S. lawfully may still adjust status despite a visa overstay.

What has shifted is how the government is enforcing removal authority. Visa overstays, long treated as low-priority civil violations in family-based cases, are now being used as grounds for immediate detention. Marriage interviews — once considered administrative and safe — have become opportunities for efficient enforcement: predictable appointments, secure locations, and applicants whose identity and presence are pre-verified.

This shift has occurred with no public policy announcements, no new regulations, and no direct notice to families — creating serious due process concerns.

Why Families Should Be Concerned: The Human Impact

The stories emerging from San Diego are heartbreaking. Couples who followed every requirement — submitting forms, completing biometrics, providing extensive bona fide marriage evidence, passing medical exams, and holding work permits — have been separated without warning.

Infants have been taken from parents’ arms. U.S. citizen spouses have been left at USCIS offices without answers. Some applicants have been transferred between detention centers within hours. Families report confusion, fear, and emotional trauma in what should have been a hopeful moment in their immigration journey.

A New Era of Immigration Practice Under the Trump Administration

It is important for applicants to understand that U.S. immigration practice has fundamentally shifted under the current administration. Policies, priorities, and on-the-ground enforcement have changed more dramatically than at any time in recent memory. Immigration benefits that were once routine — including marriage-based green card interviews — now carry significant enforcement risk for even minor status issues such as visa overstays. The assumption that lawful entry and a bona fide marriage protect an applicant from detention is no longer reliable. Intended immigrants must exercise extreme caution and should no longer approach the green card process as a straightforward administrative path.  

Today, expert immigration attorney representation is not optional — it is essential. From pre-interview preparation to attending the interview itself, and especially in the event of an ICE encounter, having knowledgeable counsel can make the difference between lawful permanent residency and detention or removal proceedings.

Our Commitment: Protecting Families Through the Unknown

At the Law Offices of Sabrina Li, we believe no family should face these risks alone. We conduct comprehensive pre-interview risk assessments, accompany clients to their appointments when appropriate, and remain fully prepared to respond immediately if ICE becomes involved. Our team stands ready to assist with bond requests, stays of removal, waiver strategies, and federal litigation whenever necessary.

If you or a loved one has an upcoming USCIS interview, contact us today at 213-375-8096 or info@sabrinali.law. We stand with families navigating this uncertain landscape and will fight tirelessly to protect your rights, your dignity, and your future.