U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

ICE was created in 2003 through a merger of the investigative and interior enforcement elements of the former U.S. Customs Service and the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The agency has an annual budget of approximately $8 billion, primarily devoted to three operational directorates — Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), and the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA). ICE's mission is to protect America through criminal investigations and enforcing immigration laws to preserve national security and public safety. The Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) directorate upholds U.S. immigration law at, within, and beyond our borders. ERO's work is critical to the enforcement of immigration law against those who present a danger to national security, are a threat to public safety, or undermine the integrity of the immigration system. ERO operations target public safety threats, such as convicted criminal undocumented aliens and gang members, as well as individuals who have violated immigration laws.