Special Review - Initial Observations Regarding Family Separation Issues Under the Zero Tolerance Policy

DHS was not fully prepared to implement the Zero Tolerance Policy. Faced with resource limitations and other challenges, DHS regulated the number of asylum-seekers entering the United States through ports of entry at the same time that it encouraged asylum-seekers to come to the ports. During Zero Tolerance, CBP held alien children for long periods in holding facilities intended for short-term detention. DHS also struggled to identify, track, and reunify families separated under Zero Tolerance due to limitations with its information technology systems, including a lack of integration between systems. Finally, inconsistent information provided by DHS to aliens who arrived with children during Zero Tolerance resulted in some parents not understanding that they would be separated from their children, and being unable to communicate with their children after separation. We do not make any recommendations.