Migrant interdictions refer to instances when the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) intercepts vessels carrying migrants on U.S. naval territory. In 2024, media reports recounted tragic stories of migrants, including children, fleeing the dangerous conditions in Haiti on boats to seek protection in the United States. The USCG, an arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) tasked with patrolling the nation’s territorial waters, often intercepts ships carrying migrants and detains those individuals before they can set foot in the United States. Migrants who express a fear of persecution in their country of origin, and migrant children in particular, are entitled to special protection from repatriation. However, the public has limited information about how the USCG ensures that migrants entitled to these protections receive a fair process so that their claims for protection can be assessed.
Government information reveals that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officers interview interdicted migrants if they express fear of return while still on Coast Guard vessels. These interviews determine migrants’ fate, as officers decide if those individuals will be repatriated. What remains a mystery is whether these interviews occur under the appropriate circumstances and how USCIS conducts these interviews. Further, data about interdicted migrants is not readily available.
Key Developments:
On May 7, 2026, the Council obtained important records on training Protection Screening Officers (PSOs) receive. PSOs are specialized asylum and immigration interviewers by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to conduct credible fear interviews for interdicted migrants.
- Credible Fear at Sea (CFAS) Screening Form (Cuban Migrants)
- CFAS Screening form (Non-Cuban Migrants)
- IRAD NSGB Processing on the Convention Against Torture
- Policies Governing the Screening of Migrants
- Interpreter Agreement for At-Sea Credible Fear Interview
- History of Maritime Protection Policy
- Naval Station Guantanamo Bay – Migrant Assessment Form
- Naval Station Guantanamo Bay – Interview Notes
- Credibility and Evidence for Protection Screening Officers
- Analyzing Individual Credibility Concerns
The Council also obtained data on 2,235 individuals interdicted and subsequently screened for credible fear between October 9, 2020 to June 23, 2024. The data shows the following:
- Nationality: USCG interdicted migrants from 24 nationalities.
- 76.6% of migrants were Cuban;
- 14.27% of migrants were Haitian;
- 4.3% of migrants were Dominican;
- Gender: 79.5% of interdicted migrants were men.
- Age: Approximately 196 minors were interdicted – including three babies under the age of one. Age was calculated by subtracting the year of interdiction from the migrant’s birth year.
- Screening Type: 97.9% of migrants were screened “at-sea.” The remaining were interviewed at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB).
- Case Type: 85.6% of cases resulted in “non-protect.”
Obtaining the Information:
June 28, 2024: The Council filed three requests under FOIA to uncover what happens to migrants aboard Coast Guard vessels after they are interdicted at sea.
The requests sought the following information:
- Records about the agencies’ procedures when the Coast Guard discovers migrants in a vessel at sea, including the procedures to be followed when the migrants are minors.
- Records about the process the agencies must follow when migrants express fear of returning to their home countries.
- Information about how the agencies provide language access for migrants encountered at sea who have limited English proficiency.
- Data on migrant interdictions.
The information obtained through these requests will shed light on how the U.S. government treats migrants found at sea and whether the government is giving them a fair opportunity to seek protection from persecution.
