How to Look Up an ICE Detainee: A Detailed Guide for Families and Advocates

When a family member is detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), finding out where they are being held can feel urgent and confusing. Families often receive little or no immediate information about the person's location, custody status, or how to reach them. The fastest starting point is the ICE Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS) at locator.ice.gov, a free public tool that finds people in ICE custody by A-Number or by name, country of birth, and date of birth. As of August 2026, this guide walks a Pennsylvania family through the search step by step: what you need first, who to call when the locator shows nothing, where Pennsylvania detainees are held, how to set up calls and visits, how to avoid scams, and how to get a lawyer in fast, including where bond eligibility stands after the Third Circuit's August 28, 2026 decision.

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What the ICE Detainee Locator Can and Cannot Tell You

The ICE lookup tool shows one thing: whether a person is currently in ICE detention, and at which facility. It does not show why someone was arrested or when their hearing is.

• It only shows people in ICE custody. ICE says the locator also lists someone who has been in Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody for more than 48 hours, but a person in a county jail on an ICE detainer and not yet transferred, or in a federal prison on criminal charges, will not appear.
• It excludes anyone under 18. Children in immigration custody are held through the Office of Refugee Resettlement, not ICE, and are not searchable in ODLS.
• There is a lag after arrest. ICE says records update within hours, but families often see nothing for 24 to 72 hours, sometimes longer during transfers. Keep checking.
• Names must match ICE's spelling exactly. ICE's own example: a search for John Doe will not find Jon Doe or John Doe-Smith. Include a hyphen if the record has one.

Step 1: Find the A-Number Before You Search

The Alien Registration Number, or A-Number, is the most reliable way to find someone. It is an 8- or 9-digit number after the letter "A" (for example, A123-456-789), and anyone who has filed with USCIS, been in immigration court, or been encountered by immigration agents likely has one.

Where families usually find it

• An Employment Authorization Document (work permit card), where it is printed as "USCIS#."
• A green card, an I-94, or any USCIS receipt or approval notice.
• An old Notice to Appear, hearing notice, or bond paperwork from a prior case.
• Copies the family kept, or files from any lawyer who previously handled a case.
• The wristband or intake paperwork the detained person receives. If they call you, ask them to read it to you.

Do not wait on a Freedom of Information Act request; FOIA responses take months. If no A-Number can be found, go straight to the name search.

Step 2: How to Search locator.ice.gov

Go to https://locator.ice.gov/odls/#/search. The system offers two searches.

A-Number search

Enter the A-Number and the country of birth. The field needs nine digits, so if the A-Number has only eight, add a zero at the front. Use the actual country of birth, not the country of citizenship if those differ. Use the A-Number search whenever the number is available.

Name search (immigration search by name)

Enter the first name, last name, country of birth, and date of birth. The system does not account for spelling variations, name order, accents, or hyphens. Where two surnames are standard, try the name as it appears on the passport, then only the first surname, then both surnames hyphenated, then common misspellings an officer might have typed. Each variation is a separate search.

Reading the result

If the person is found, ODLS lists the facility with its address and phone number. Screenshot it with the date and time. If the search returns nothing, the person may not be in ICE custody yet, the record may not have updated, or the name may not match. A "Not in Custody" result generally means ICE released or removed the person within roughly the past 60 days. Neither result is proof of release. Keep searching every few hours.

Step 3: No Result? Who to Call in Pennsylvania

If the locator shows nothing after repeated tries, pick up the phone. The responsible ICE office for Pennsylvania is the Philadelphia field office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), which also covers Delaware and West Virginia.

ICE ERO Philadelphia field office

The office is at 114 North 8th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, and ICE lists its phone number as (215) 656-7164. Some directories list a (267) 479 number instead; the ice.gov field office page is the one to trust. Give the person's full name, A-Number, and date of birth, ask which facility they are in, and ask for the name of the assigned deportation officer.

ICE Detention Reporting and Information Line

ICE's national line for families is 1-888-351-4024, staffed by live operators Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern, with Spanish-speaking operators available. It handles basic case information requests and reports of problems in detention. Expect a wait.

EOIR hearing lookup by A-Number

The immigration court, not ICE, tracks hearings. The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) runs an automated case system at acis.eoir.justice.gov and a phone line at 1-800-898-7180. Both work by A-Number and show whether a case has been filed, the assigned court, and the next hearing date. If ACIS shows a hearing within days, retain a lawyer now.

The county jail

If the person was arrested by local police in Allentown, Bethlehem, or Easton, they may still be at the county jail. Call the jail directly; Lehigh and Northampton Counties both have online inmate lookups.

Is someone in your family in ICE custody right now?

Locating them is only the first step. Bond, custody redetermination, and release come next, and the timing matters. We represent detained clients across the Lehigh Valley and Pennsylvania. Hablamos español.

Talk to a Removal Defense Attorney

Or call (484) 763-4984

ICE Detainer at a County Jail vs. ICE Custody

An ICE detainer (Form I-247A) is a request asking a local jail to hold a person for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released so ICE can pick them up. While the detainer is pending, the person is in county custody, appears in the county jail's inmate list, and will not appear in the ICE locator. Once ICE takes physical custody, the person leaves the county system and, after the usual lag, shows up in ODLS.

This distinction has real history here. After the 2014 Third Circuit decision in Galarza v. Szalczyk, Lehigh County agreed to stop holding people on ICE detainers without a judicial warrant. A July 2026 proposal for a broader county ICE policy failed on a 4-4 vote of the Board of Commissioners, so there is no new written policy, but the Galarza practice on detainers remains. If a relative was arrested by local police, call the county jail first and ask whether there is an ICE detainer and when release is scheduled. That is your window to get a lawyer involved before ICE arrives.

Where Pennsylvania Detainees Are Usually Held in 2026

People arrested by ICE in the Lehigh Valley are processed through the Philadelphia field office and moved to a contracted facility. As of mid-2026, the facilities most often listed for Pennsylvania arrests are:

• Moshannon Valley Processing Center, 555 GEO Drive, Philipsburg, PA 16866 (Clearfield County). Operated by GEO Group with roughly 1,900 beds, it is the largest ICE facility in the Northeast and held more than 1,600 people in July 2026. Facility line: (814) 768-1200.
• Pike County Correctional Facility, 175 Pike County Boulevard, Lords Valley, PA 18428. A county jail under an intergovernmental agreement with ICE, still in use in 2026. Main line: (570) 775-5500.
• Clinton County Correctional Facility, 58 Pine Mountain Road, McElhattan, PA 17748 (Clinton County). Holds ICE detainees under a U.S. Marshals agreement; its ICE population swung from more than 800 in 2025 to under 100 by March 2026. Detainee information line: (570) 547-6903, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Elizabeth Contract Detention Facility (Elizabeth, NJ) and Delaney Hall (Newark, NJ) are the regional New Jersey facilities and regularly receive people arrested in eastern Pennsylvania.

Transfers out of state

ICE transfers people frequently and without notice to families; someone at Moshannon Valley on Monday may be in Louisiana by Wednesday. During a transfer the locator may briefly show nothing or an outdated facility. Re-check twice a day for the first week and tell your lawyer about any transfer immediately, because the place of detention determines which federal court hears a habeas petition and which immigration court hears the case.

Calls, Visits, Money, and Scams

Phone calls

Detained people call out; you cannot call in. Each facility uses a phone vendor. Moshannon Valley uses ICE Talton tablets with accounts set up through GettingOut.com; county jails often use Securus or GTL. The family sets up a prepaid account with the vendor tied to the detainee's ID number. Ask the facility which vendor it uses before paying anyone.

Visits

Each facility sets its own visiting days, dress code, and ID rules, and some allow only video visits. Moshannon Valley allows family visits seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., by assigned time slot, and requires a government photo ID for adults; call ahead to confirm the slot. Check the facility's page on ice.gov or call before driving.

Commissary accounts

Funds for commissary and phone time are deposited through the facility's vendor (MoneyGram, Access Corrections, or GettingOut, depending on the facility), using the detainee's full name and facility ID number. Keep every receipt.

What not to do

Do not send money to anyone who calls claiming to be ICE or a "bond agent" who can release your relative for a fee. ICE does not call families demanding payment, gift cards, wire transfers, or cryptocurrency, and immigration bonds are paid through ICE's CeBONDS system (or, by exception, in person at an ERO office), never by phone. Do not hire a "notario" to file forms. Do not let the detained person sign anything, especially a stipulated removal or voluntary departure form, before a lawyer reviews it. Report scam calls to the DHS Office of Inspector General at 1-800-323-8603.

Getting a Lawyer In Fast: G-28, EOIR-28, and Bond Eligibility

Once you know where the person is, a lawyer files Form G-28 to appear before ICE and USCIS and Form EOIR-28 to appear before the immigration court, then obtains the custody documents and the Notice to Appear and requests a bond hearing.

Bond eligibility after the Third Circuit's August 28, 2026 decision

In 2025 the Board of Immigration Appeals held in Matter of Yajure Hurtado, 29 I&N Dec. 216 (BIA 2025), that people who entered without inspection face mandatory detention under INA section 235(b)(2)(A) with no bond hearing, and ICE applied that reading to nearly everyone arrested in the interior. Federal courts pushed back. A nationwide class was certified in Maldonado Bautista v. Santacruz and the district court vacated Yajure Hurtado in February 2026, although the Ninth Circuit stayed most of that relief outside the Central District of California in March 2026 (it later reached the same result on the merits in a separate case, Rodriguez Vazquez v. Bostock, on July 30, 2026). The Fifth Circuit went the other way in Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi.

For Pennsylvania the controlling decision is now Buele Morocho v. Warden Philadelphia FDC, Nos. 26-1150 and 26-1454 (3d Cir. Aug. 28, 2026), a precedential 2-1 opinion affirming two Eastern District of Pennsylvania habeas grants. The Third Circuit held that a person who entered years ago and was arrested inside the country is not "seeking admission" and is detained under section 236(a), which lets an immigration judge consider bond. That puts the Third Circuit with seven other circuits against the Fifth and Eighth. Expect the government to seek further review, and Supreme Court petitions are already pending in several of those cases, so this posture can shift. Our bond hearing guide explains what a judge weighs and how bond is paid. No outcome can be promised, but a bond hearing is again available to many Pennsylvania detainees, and asking quickly matters.

If ACIS shows an old removal order, especially an in absentia order from a missed hearing, the lawyer's first job is a motion to reopen and a stay of removal, and ICE can move fast on old orders.

What This Means in the Lehigh Valley

For a family in Allentown, Bethlehem, or Easton, the sequence is this: search the locator with the A-Number the same day. If nothing appears, call the Lehigh or Northampton County jail to rule out a detainer, then call ERO Philadelphia. Check ACIS for a hearing date. Once the facility appears, expect a two- to three-hour drive to Philipsburg or Lords Valley, or a trip to Newark or Elizabeth, so set up the phone account before planning a visit. Detained dockets move fast, and after Buele Morocho a bond request is the first thing a removal defense attorney in the Lehigh Valley will evaluate. If ICE has just picked someone up and you have no paperwork at all, our emergency page lists what to gather and how to reach us after hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I look up someone in ICE custody?

Go to locator.ice.gov and search by A-Number plus country of birth, or by full name, country of birth, and date of birth. If nothing appears, wait a few hours and try name variations. If there is still no result, call ICE ERO Philadelphia at (215) 656-7164 or the ICE Detention Reporting and Information Line at 1-888-351-4024.

How do I check if someone is in ICE custody if I do not have their A-Number?

Use the name search on the ICE locator with the exact spelling, country of birth, and date of birth. Also look for the A-Number on a work permit card (listed as USCIS#), a green card, or any prior USCIS or immigration court notice. If the person calls you, ask them to read the number from their wristband.

Is there an ICE detainer lookup for someone in a county jail?

Not a public one. A person held on an ICE detainer is still in county custody and appears only in the county jail's inmate list, not in the ICE locator. Call the jail and ask whether an ICE detainer has been lodged and when the person is scheduled for release. In Lehigh County, the jail does not hold people on detainers without a judicial warrant.

How long after an ICE arrest does someone show up in the locator?

ICE says records update within hours, but families commonly wait 24 to 72 hours, and longer during transfers or heavy enforcement periods. Minors under 18 and people still in county jails never appear, and CBP detainees appear only after 48 hours in CBP custody. Keep searching and call the field office if the person is still missing after two days.

Can a detained person in Pennsylvania get an immigration bond in 2026?

Often, yes. On August 28, 2026, the Third Circuit held in Buele Morocho v. Warden Philadelphia FDC that people arrested inside the country after entering years earlier are held under INA section 236(a) and can ask an immigration judge for bond. Eligibility still depends on criminal history and other factors, the government may seek further review, and no result can be promised, so a lawyer should evaluate the case immediately.

Get Help Finding and Freeing a Loved One in ICE Custody

Lehigh Valley Immigration Law represents detained clients at Moshannon Valley, Pike County, Clinton County, and the New Jersey facilities. If someone in your family has just been picked up, we can help locate them, enter an appearance, request bond, and respond to any removal order. We offer a free bilingual consultation by phone or video. Call (484) 763-4984 or contact us online. Every case is different and no outcome can be promised, but the earlier a lawyer is involved, the more options remain open.

Locating a detained loved one is only the first step. If someone you know is in ICE custody, our removal defense attorney in Allentown team can step in quickly to fight for bond and a way home.