Houston Contract Detention Facility

Houston Contract Detention Facility is an ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) detention facility located in Houston, Texas. It falls under the Houston Field Office ERO field office area of responsibility.

Facility quick reference

How to locate or contact a detainee

To locate someone in ICE custody, use the ICE Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov. You will need the person’s A-number (Alien Registration Number) and country of birth, or their full name, country of birth, and date of birth.

To ask whether someone is held here, and to leave an urgent message for a detainee, ICE publishes one number: (281) 449-1481. Give the detainee’s full name, alien registration number (A-number), and your name and phone number where you can be reached; the facility passes the message on. Detainees cannot receive incoming calls — they place outgoing calls themselves. Have the person’s biographical information ready when you call (full legal name and any aliases, date of birth, and country of birth). Confirm current hours by calling (281) 449-1481 or checking the official ICE page linked above.

• ICE lists detainee-information calls to (281) 449-1481 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (checked October 20, 2026).

Sending mail, commissary funds, and personal items

ICE lists each facility’s format on that facility’s page at ice.gov. This facility’s own ICE page says incoming mail “is not read upon opening, only inspected by the delivering officer” and that detainees may seal their own outgoing letters. ICE’s detention standards allow more than that. ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight inspected this facility in June 2026 under the Performance-Based National Detention Standards (PBNDS) 2011 (Revised 2016) (inspection report). Under that standard’s mail section, 5.1, staff open and inspect incoming general correspondence for contraband in the detainee’s presence unless the facility administrator authorizes otherwise, and it “may be read to the extent necessary to maintain security, as authorized by the facility administrator” — reading, with the administrator’s approval, may be done at random. Outgoing general mail may be inspected or read if it is addressed to another detainee or there is evidence it might threaten the facility’s secure or orderly operation, endanger the recipient or the public, or facilitate criminal activity. Only special correspondence or legal mail — mail to or from attorneys and other legal representatives, government attorneys, judges and courts, embassies and consulates, the President and Vice President, members of Congress, the Justice Department and DHS (including ICE, ERO, ICE Health Services Corps, CRCL and the DHS Inspector General), outside health care professionals, grievance administrators and the news media — may not be read: the envelope must be labeled “special correspondence” or “legal mail” and identify the sender’s or addressee’s title and office. Staff may neither read nor copy it; any inspection takes place in the detainee’s presence and is limited to detecting physical contraband and confirming that enclosures qualify as special correspondence or legal mail. Rules for commissary (account) deposits and permitted personal items vary by facility, and so does the number that handles them — ICE names a separate facility mail clerk on some facility pages. This facility’s deposit route, accepted form of payment and contacts are in the Sending Items to Detainees section of its own ICE page (linked above).

• ICE says letters must include the last four digits of the detainee’s A-number, plus the sender’s name and address (checked October 20, 2026).
• ICE says that after departure or transfer, only legal mail is forwarded; general correspondence is marked “Return to Sender” and returned to the post office (checked October 20, 2026).

Legal access, attorneys, and immigration court information

Detainees have the right to speak with an attorney, and attorney–client visits and calls are confidential. For information about a case before the immigration court (EOIR), EOIR’s automated line 1-800-898-7180 (toll-free, 24 hours a day, English and Spanish) gives the next hearing date and case status; callers enter the 9 digits of the A-number, without the letter A (EOIR, checked October 24, 2026). For a matter before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the main line of EOIR (the Justice Department agency the BIA belongs to) is (703) 305-0289. Applications for relief from removal must be filed directly with the immigration court handling the case. If you cannot afford an attorney, the immigration court can provide a list of pro bono legal service providers — see the related resources below.

Additional money, package and contact information from ICE

ICE’s Houston Contract Detention Facility page publishes these details (checked October 23, 2026):

• Money deposits: ICE lists Western Union at 1-800-225-5227 or www.WesternUnion.com for deposits to a detainee’s account.
• Visitor clothing: ICE prohibits shorts, mini skirts above mid-thigh, short dresses, tank tops, sleeveless shirts and see-through clothing during visits.
• Packages: ICE limits permitted items to those determined necessary solely for travel or release from custody, with the ICE Deportation Officer’s approval. ICE says the facility’s Chief of Security is the contact before packages are sent.
• Electronic legal correspondence: ICE lists houstoncourtvisitation@corecivic.com for legal representatives. ICE says that, when timely communication by mail is not possible, the facility administrator can authorize a reasonable amount of electronic written communication at the administrator’s discretion. ICE calls for a subject line identifying legal correspondence/mail, attached documents/forms, and an email and attachment cover sheet containing the detainee’s full name and A-number, the sender’s return fax number, the total number of pages and a “Legal Mail” notation.
• Tablet messages: ICE says the facility has tablets and directs information about non-confidential messages to gettingout.com.
• Case information: ICE directs requests about people detained here to Houston.Outreach@ice.dhs.gov; ICE says this mailbox does not accept applications for Stay of Removal or Case Appeals.

Feedback, complaints, and oversight

To report a concern about conditions at this facility or the conduct of an ICE or contract employee, contact the ERO Houston Field Office that oversees this facility, or file a complaint with the DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL). On its own Make a Civil Rights Complaint page DHS publishes one channel — the online portal at engage.dhs.gov/crcl-complaint; CBP additionally publishes, for the same office, the e-mail address CRCL@dhs.gov, fax (202) 401-4708, and the postal address DHS/CRCL, Compliance Branch, 2707 Martin Luther King Jr Ave SE, Mail Stop #0190, Washington, DC 20528-0190. The DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) hotline is 1-800-323-8603.

ICE inspection record

ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight (ODO) inspected Houston Contract Detention Facility on June 9–11, 2026 (ODO report, Inspection 2026-001-088), the most recent report for it on ICE’s ODO facility inspections page when we checked on October 15, 2026. What the report says:

• Who runs it: the facility opened in 1984 and is owned and operated by CoreCivic; ERO began housing detainees there in 1986 under ERO Houston. It is a contract detention facility operating under the Performance-Based National Detention Standards (PBNDS) 2011 (Revised 2016) and holds male and female detainees of low through high security classification for periods longer than 72 hours. ERO deportation officers are on site Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Services and accreditation: Trinity Services provides food, the ICE Health Service Corps provides medical care and Keefe Commissary Network provides commissary. The facility was accredited by the American Correctional Association in August 2019 and the National Commission on Correctional Health Care in September 2024, and was audited under the DHS PREA standards in April 2024.
• Findings: compliant with 27 of 29 standards; 2 deficiencies, both repeat deficiencies: water staining from leaking roofs on walls and acoustic panels in 7 of 29 housing units, and water staining on the floors of 9 of 113 shower stalls, and late grievance responses (staff answered 7 of 25 grievances 6 to 12 days after receiving them; the standard requires a response within five days).
• Rating: Good, down from Superior at the January 2025 inspection, when ODO found 5 deficiencies in 4 standards. The report explains the rating dropped even though deficiencies decreased because a Superior rating requires zero repeat and zero priority-component deficiencies.
• Detainee interviews: ODO interviewed 30 detainees; none alleged discrimination, mistreatment or abuse. Ten complained about dust in air vents, mold smells, roaches and bathroom sanitation, and fifteen about food portions, taste, seasoning and quality; ODO found the facility compliant with all Food Service standards.

ODO redacts bed-capacity and population counts in the published report; for population, see the ICE statistics box above.

Earlier inspection

• February 22-25, 2021 — compliance inspection: ODO reviewed 21 standards under PBNDS 2011 (Revised 2016), found compliance with 18, and identified four deficiencies in the remaining three standards. ODO report.
• For that February 22-25, 2021 inspection, one of 15 detainee files lacked an Order to Detain (Form I-203) bearing the authorizing official’s signature. ODO report.
• During the February 22-25, 2021 inspection, ODO found that the post officer did not require visitors to print and sign their names in the general visitor logbook. ODO report.

287(g) agreements in Harris County

This facility is in Harris County, Texas (per the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder for the address ICE publishes). ICE's 287(g) participating-agencies workbook, dated October 9, 2026, records 1 agreement with agencies in that county:

Source: ICE, 287(g) program (participating-agencies workbook). A 287(g) agreement is between ICE and the law-enforcement agency; on its own it says nothing about this facility. What each model means · all agreements by state.

Related procedural resources

• Know Your Rights — what to do if ICE detains you
• EOIR immigration court schedules and procedures
• BIA-recognized legal-aid organizations in Texas
• Other ICE detention facilities in Texas
• All facilities under the Houston Field Office