The government is committed to the safe reunification of families that were unjustly separated at the U.S.-Mexico border.
On Tuesday February 2, 2021, the formation of the Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families (Task Force) was ordered and placed the Secretary of Homeland Security as the Chair.
In addition to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families includes the Department of State, Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Justice.
The Task Force is implementing comprehensive strategies that will bring families back together and ensure that the children and parents who were intentionally separated from each other are provided support.
If you are a minor, legal guardian, or parent who came to the U.S.-Mexico border from January 21, 2017 to January 20, 2021, was detained by the U.S. government together with your parent, legal guardian, or child, and then was separated by the U.S. government and held in different facilities, you may be affected by a class action settlement.
A settlement (“Settlement”) has been reached in a class action lawsuit titled Ms. L v. ICE, 18-cv-00428-DMS-AHG (S.D. Cal.). This lawsuit concerns families who were apprehended by the U.S. government together at the U.S.-Mexico border, but then separated and kept apart. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California has approved the Settlement on December 11, 2023.
For questions regarding your proposed class membership, please contact the Help Desk maintained by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The Task Force launched a registration website for separated families to self-identify as potentially qualified for the process to facilitate reunification. Please visit www.together.gov or www.juntos.gov to determine if you qualify and submit a registration form. For additional information on the reunification process, please visit www.together.gov. For additional information on support services, please read the www.together.gov Support Services page. If you are an attorney, please find additional information on Together.gov's Attorneys page.
Please review FRTF’s filing guide and cover letters page for the resources needed to apply for initial parole, parole-in-place, advance parole, or employment authorization documents.
I am a non-citizen parent who has been separated from my child and need to submit additional information to ICE regarding my separation.
A separated parent or Legal Guardian in ICE custody can submit additional information to ICE regarding their separation using the FSSIF. Legal representatives of separated parents/legal guardians in ICE or USMS custody may provide the FSSIF directly to ICE via email at SeparationSupplementalInformation@ice.dhs.gov.
Alexandra Carnes
Acting Executive Director
Family Reunification Task Force
The Task Force has defined guiding principles for their work together:
The Family Reunification Task Force (Task Force) will be defined by the relentless pursuit of bringing families back together.
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The Task Force must balance the need for swift action with the need for comprehensive and stable support.
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To the extent permissible under law, separated families should have the option of being reunified either in the United States or their country of origin.
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The Task Force will partner with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the private sector to leverage needed reunification and support services and receive recommendations throughout the reunification process.
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As permitted by law, support to reunified families will be defined very broadly, to include transportation, healthcare (including trauma and mental health services), legal services, and career and educational services.
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To the extent possible, the expenses of reunification and reunification-related support will be borne by government, NGOs, and the private sector – and never by the families.
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Reunification efforts will be defined broadly. Additional family members of the children who were separated, such as siblings, will be considered for reunification where there is a compelling humanitarian interest in doing so.
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As permitted by law, the Task Force will identify opportunities for families to pursue legal immigration status that best ensures their safety and stability.
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The Task Force will maintain clear communication with the public to explain the reunification process, report on progress, and educate on available resources to support reunited families.
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The Task Force will identify and implement long-term reform efforts to ensure that family separations not based on the best interests of the child are not permitted to occur again.
For answers to Frequently Asked Questions, please visit Together.gov.
For Inquiries
Press Archives
- February 2, 2023: Statement of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas on the Family Reunification Task Force and the Successful Reunification of More Than 600 Children With Their Families
- February 2, 2023: FACT SHEET: A Review by the Family Reunification Task Force on the Second Anniversary of Its Establishment
- December 9, 2021: DHS to Request Public Input on How the U.S. Government Can Prevent Family Separations at the U.S. Border
- August 20, 2021: Readout of Secretary Mayorkas’s Meeting with Reunited Families Separated Under the Previous Administration’s “Zero-Tolerance” Policy
- June 8, 2021: Family Reunification Task Force Provides Initial Progress Report and Announces Upcoming Reunification of 29 Families
- May 3, 2021: Biden Administration Begins This Week to Reunite Families Separated Under the Prior Administration
- March 1, 2021: DHS Secretary Mayorkas Announces Family Reunification Task Force Principles and Executive Director
- February 2, 2021: Executive Order on the Establishment of Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families | Whitehouse.gov
Executive Order 14011 (E.O. 14011) directs the Family Reunification Task Force to provide an initial progress report to the President of the United States no later than 120 days after establishment, with interim progress reports every 60 days thereafter. Read our progress reports here.