What an Immigration Bond Is and Is Not

An immigration bond is a monetary amount set by Immigration and Customs Enforcement or by an Immigration Judge. This amount must be paid in cash, with a cashier’s check or money order, to obtain someone’s release from immigration detention. Being released on an Immigration Bond does not mean the detainee will get to stay in the US. Is simply allows the detainee to remain free from custody while their case is being processed.

The bond serves as a type of guarantee that the person released from detention will appear at all court proceedings, report to Immigration if asked to and will leave the United States if deportation is ordered at the end of the case.  If the person bonded out fails to do any of these things, the bond money is forfeited and the government will keep it.

Immigration bonds and criminal bonds are not the same thing.  The main difference between the two is that immigration bonds are civil matters while criminal bonds involve violations that can end in jail or prison time for the accused. The other big difference is the amount of financial risk for the bondsman, the surety company and obligor.

Not all detainees will be allowed to post bond. If ICE determines that a non-citizen is eligible for a delivery bond or grants a voluntary departure bond, a monetary amount will be assigned for the bond and it must be paid or “posted” before someone can be released. There are two ways to post these bonds.

Cash Bond

With a Cash Bond, the full bond amount must be paid on the behalf of the non-citizen, by someone with legal status, directly to ICE. This means if the bond amount is set at $5,000 then $5,000 must be paid to ICE to gain someone’s release.

Acceptable forms of payment are: Cash, Cashier’s Check, Money Order or US Notes or Bonds – No Credit Cards.

Surety Bond

If paying the full bond amount in cash is not an option, you will need a Surety Bond and will have to use the services of a private surety company. Working with an agent (bondsman) who specializes in Immigration Bonds and is familiar with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) system can make the entire process more affordable, easier and quicker.

A bond agent from the surety company will post the bond with ICE and only charge you a percentage of the total bond amount. This percentage is usually 15-20% of the total bond amount. If the total bond is $5,000 and there is 20% premium, you would owe the agent $1,000 for his or her services.

Acceptable forms of payment include: Cash, Credit Card, Cashier’s Check or Money Order.  You may also have to have collateral to secure the full bond amount.

The Most Two Common Types of Immigration Bonds are Delivery Bonds and Voluntary Departure Bonds:

• Delivery Bond
  Any non-citizen or alien that is arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and is issued a Warrant of Arrest and a Notice of Custody Conditions may be eligible for a delivery bond. The amount of the delivery bond should be large enough to ensure that the non-citizen will appear at all immigration proceedings.

• Voluntary Departure Bond
  Any non-citizen or alien who is allowed to depart the country voluntarily after being placed in removal proceedings has been given Voluntary Departure. The Immigration Judge may require that someone post a large enough bond to ensure that the non-citizen leaves the United States within the time specified.