NEWS / Federal Appeals Court denies request to prevent IRS from sharing immigrant data with DHS

The federal District of Columbia Court of Appeals has rejected a request by immigrant advocacy groups to temporarily block the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from sharing immigrant data with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The request, filed by Centro de Trabajadores Unidos and other advocacy groups, had originally been rejected by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia Circuit in May 2025 but was then appealed. The appeals court denial ruling was issued by a 3-judge panel.

Judge Henry T. Edwards was quoted by The Hill as stating that the IRS is legally able to disclose addresses if they are not “taxpayer return information”.

In response to the appeals court ruling, Attorney General Pam Bondi posted on X that the ruling is a “crucial victory” for President Donald Trump’s agenda to “Make America Safe Again” and that laws set by Congress “must be enforced, not undermined by activist judges”.

In April 2025, the DHS and United States Department of the Treasury agreed to a memorandum of understanding enabling Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be able to request the names and addresses of individuals suspected to be living in the United States without living status from the IRS. The memorandum led to the resignation of the then-acting IRS commissioner Melanie Krause.

Undocumented immigrants and their employers are required to pay US taxes on their income. In addition, their employers may be subject to ICE fines and penalties.