As part of the deal, the IRS agreed to turn over information about undocumented immigrants who DHS says are already facing deportation orders and are under federal criminal investigation, including for the crime of failing to leave the country, according to the filings.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem signed the agreement. CNN reported last month that the IRS was nearing a deal to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement track down undocumented immigrants for possible deportation.
Parts of the 15-page “memorandum of understanding” are redacted, making it difficult to discern exactly what the IRS will provide. But the terms of the deal say ICE will come to the IRS with the names and addresses of taxpayers that they believe have violated federal immigration laws.
The IRS would then cross-reference that information with existing taxpayer data and confirm its accuracy, CNN previously reported. IRS has addresses for undocumented immigrants because many members of that community register with the agency and pay billions of dollars in taxes each year – in exchange for their data staying confidential in most circumstances.
“The bases for this (memorandum of understanding) are founded in longstanding authorities granted by Congress, which serve to protect the privacy of law-abiding Americans while streamlining the ability to pursue criminals,” a Treasury spokesperson said in a statement.
CNN has reached out to the IRS and DHS for comment.
This is the latest boost for Trump’s immigration agenda, after a favorable Supreme Court ruling Monday cleared him to use colonial-era laws to hasten some deportations, at least for now.
Data-sharing ‘is lawful,’ DOJ says
Liberal advocacy organizations, immigrant rights groups, and Democratic lawmakers have slammed the Trump administration for trying to use IRS data to facilitate deportations.
They say this is a breach of trust because IRS data is supposed to stay confidential, and it will discourage undocumented immigrants from paying taxes in the future. CNN reported last week that some experts believe the uptick in requested tax filing extensions, compared with this time last year, can be attributed in part to resistance among undocumented immigrants.
Undocumented immigrants are often urged to register with the IRS and pay their federal taxes because it makes them look like law-abiding residents and could aid their immigration case.
The IRS-ICE deal repeatedly states that any cooperation between the agencies will be done in accordance with the federal laws that dictate when taxpayer data can – and can’t – be shared.
“Each request must be made consistent” with the tax code, and ICE will “ensure the proper handling, transmission, safeguarding, and security” of information it receives, the deal says.
Immigrant rights groups filed a lawsuit last month to block the IRS from turning over data to ICE. A judge declined to issue an emergency order, but another hearing is set for next week.
Justice Department lawyers said in a filing that the newly inked arrangement “is lawful.”
“The Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Department of the Treasury and DHS reiterates the agencies’ commitment to sharing information only in the way that (the federal tax code) permits and includes clear guardrails to ensure compliance,” they wrote Monday.
Lawyers from the liberal organization Public Citizen, who represent the immigrant groups, have argued that the arrangement doesn’t pass legal muster and are asking a federal judge to step in.
“The IRS has gone back on its duty to protect taxpayer information from improper disclosure,” attorney Nandan Joshi said about the deal with ICE. “If allowed to stand, this agreement will provide a roadmap for federal law enforcement to gain access to confidential taxpayer information without obtaining a court order as required by law.”
The agreement also says ICE might use artificial intelligence to analyze taxpayer data, but it would need to notify the IRS’s Office of Safeguards to ensure it complies with federal law.
A senior IRS privacy official has said in affidavits, including one filed Monday, that the agency hasn’t yet turned over any taxpayer information to DHS or ICE since Trump took office.
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