St. Paul Field Office — ICE ERO Area of Responsibility

The St. Paul Field Office is one of 24 ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) field offices that supervise detention and removal operations across the United States. This office oversees 16 detention facilities physically located in: IA, MN, ND, NE, SD, WI.

Each ICE ERO field office has a defined Area of Responsibility (AOR), generally aligned with U.S. state boundaries. The AOR determines which office supervises a particular non-citizen’s ICE check-ins, oversees their deportation case, and (when applicable) places them into civil detention. A non-citizen physically arrested in one AOR may be transferred to a detention facility in another AOR; ICE policy requires notice of transfer but does not require advance notice to family or attorneys.

Facilities under the St. Paul Field Office

How transfers between field offices work

ICE may transfer a detainee from a facility in one ERO field office’s AOR to a facility in another AOR for operational reasons (bed-space availability, medical needs, removal-flight staging). The ICE Performance-Based National Detention Standards (PBNDS) require ICE to notify the detainee’s attorney of record within 24 hours of an inter-facility transfer, and to update the Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS) within 8 hours of physical arrival at the new facility. Family members are not directly notified — they must check ODLS at locator.ice.gov.

Where cases from this office are heard

Immigration cases supervised by the St. Paul Field Office are heard at EOIR immigration courts in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin. The courts physically located in these states:

Detained dockets move fast — hearings can be scheduled within weeks. Find judge-level hearing links on the immigration court pages.

Free BIA-recognized legal help in this area

The Department of Justice recognizes nonprofit organizations whose accredited representatives can lawfully represent people in immigration proceedings — usually free or low-cost:

• Iowa: 15 active recognized organizations — most offices in Cedar Rapids
• Minnesota: 17 active recognized organizations — most offices in Austin
• North Dakota: 2 active recognized organizations — most offices in Fargo
• Nebraska: 20 active recognized organizations — most offices in Columbus
• South Dakota: 1 active recognized organizations — most offices in Principal Office
• Wisconsin: 23 active recognized organizations — most offices in Appleton

Sources: EOIR immigration court directory and the DOJ Recognition & Accreditation roster (April 2026 report). Court assignments and rosters change — verify before relying on them.

Related resources

• All 24 ERO field offices: /ice-detention/by-ero-field-office/
• ICE Online Detainee Locator (official): locator.ice.gov
• Know Your Rights — ICE encounters: /know-your-rights/
• BIA-recognized legal aid (by state): /legal-aid/bia-recognized/

Information current as of 2026-05-27 based on the official ICE.gov detention facility directory and ERO field office listings. Facility designations and field office areas of responsibility may change. This page is general information, not legal advice.