ICE eliminates age limit for new officers, offers incentives to boost recruitment

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has announced the elimination of the age limit for new hires, allowing people over the age of 40 to apply as deportation officers and special agents.

This measure, driven by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), seeks to facilitate the recruitment of personnel in a context of increasing pressure to implement the Trump Administration's mass deportation agenda.

For her part, the DHS Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed the change through a posting on the X social media platform, in an interview with Fox News stating, “We are ENDING the age cap for ICE law enforcement. Qualified candidates can now apply with no age limit.”

Previously, the age limit for deportation officers and special agents was set at 37, a restriction that is now eliminated.

DHS also noted that this initiative is supported by new funding approved through the Big Beautiful Bill.

Economic incentives

In addition, to attract more applicants, ICE is offering significant incentives, including signing bonuses of up to $50,000 and payments of up to $60,000 for student loans.

According to the agency's official recruiting page, deportation officers and special agents must be in excellent physical condition, be able to tolerate environmental stress and possess strong critical thinking skills, given the physically demanding nature of these positions.

In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, Noem claimed that recruitment efforts have been "extremely successful," noting that ICE has received more than 80,000 applications to fill 10,000 new positions.