Judge Allows IRS to Share Illegal Immigrants’ Tax Data with ICE

A federal judge on Monday declined to halt the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from sharing illegal immigrants' tax information with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), clearing the way for continued collaboration aimed at identifying and deporting individuals living in the U.S. without legal status.

The ruling marks a legal victory for the Trump administration and comes just weeks after former acting IRS Commissioner Melanie Krause stepped down over the controversial arrangement.

U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich, a Trump appointee during his first term, denied a preliminary injunction sought by nonprofit groups who argued that illegal immigrants who file taxes deserve the same privacy protections afforded to U.S. citizens and legal residents. Friedrich had previously refused to issue a temporary order blocking the data-sharing agreement.

The deal permits ICE to submit names and addresses of suspected illegal immigrants to the IRS, which then cross-checks the data against tax filings. Tax information is typically considered confidential and punishable by criminal penalties if improperly shared.

The IRS has faced internal turmoil over the administration's push to broaden access to taxpayer information. A previous acting commissioner resigned amid backlash tied to a separate controversy involving Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) gaining access to sensitive IRS data.

The Treasury Department defended the arrangement, saying it supports President Trump's broader immigration enforcement strategy.

That strategy has included mass deportations, workplace raids, and even the invocation of an obscure 18th-century wartime statute, The Alien Enemies Act, to expedite the removal of Venezuelan migrants.

Tom Bowman, policy counsel for the Center for Democracy and Technology, said last month: "[Disclosing immigrant tax records to DHS for immigration enforcement] will discourage tax compliance among immigrant communities, weaken contributions to essential public programs, and increase burdens for U.S. citizens and nonimmigrant taxpayers."

The court document says in part that, "information will only be used by officers and employees of ICE solely for the preparation for judicial or administrative proceedings, or investigation that may lead to such proceedings."

ICE leadership maintains that the inter-agency collaboration is intended strictly for "major criminal cases."