El Paso Office
El Paso Service Processing Center

About Us

Who Are We?
Where Are We?
Hours And Visitations
Contacting Us
Local Procedures

Who Are We?

This is a temporary detention center for approximately 800 detainees who are waiting for their immigration status to be determined or who are awaiting repatriation. The facility was originally built in 1967. Construction of Executive Office for Immigration Review courtrooms /offices and new buildings for detainee services was completed in 1997. ICE Detention & Removal Operations (DRO) administers the operations of this facility.

Detention and Removal Operations

Field Office Director: Robert E. Jolicoeur (915) 225-0885

Assistant Field Office Director: Alfredo Campos (915) 225-1901

Where Are We?

Street Address:
El Paso Processing Center
8915 Montana Avenue
El Paso, Texas 79925
(915) 225-1941

Parking: Parking is available directly in front of the EOIR building. Visitors must have a valid driver license to enter the premises.

Accessibility for Individuals with Special Needs: There are parking areas, entrances, and other necessary accommodations for any individuals with special needs.

Hours and Visitations

Public Visiting Hours:

Administration visitor hours are from 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Detainee Visitation:

Visitors must have a valid verifiable photo identification card. Minors who are visiting the facility must be accompanied by an adult guardian (18 years or older). Children must not be left unaccompanied in the waiting room, visiting room or any other area. Any disruptive conduct on either party will result in the termination of the visit.

Visiting hours are scheduled according to the detainee’s first initial of their last name. The hours are as follows:

Saturday, 12:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m., A-F

Saturday, 7:00 p.m. - 9:30 p.m., G-L

Sunday, 12:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m., M-S

Sunday, 7:00 p.m. - 9:30 p.m., S-Z

Attorney Visitation Hours:

Attorneys have access to their clients from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. seven days a week for scheduled appointments. Paralegal representatives will be allowed access from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday thru Friday and from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on weekends and holidays. In case of emergencies or other reasons, attorneys may have access to detainees 24 hours a day, seven days a week, once the attorney has coordinated access with the Supervisory Immigration Enforcement Agent on duty.

Consular Visits:

Consular officials may meet with their detained nationals at any time. It is requested that prior arrangements be made with the office of the Assistant Field Office Director to the extent possible, and that consular officials bring appropriate credentials when they come to the facility. The Assistant Field Office Director can be reached at (915) 225-1903.

Clergy Visits:

Clergy may visit detainees at any time, but must make prior arrangements with the office of the Assistant Field Office Director. The El Paso Processing Center Facility offers various religious services. Feel free to contact the Chaplain’s Office for a complete list. The Religious Services staff of the El Paso Processing Center provide to the extent possible for the religious observances of all detainees irrespective of their faith or beliefs.

Visiting Restrictions:

1. All family / social visits are non-contact unless approved by the AFOD or designee.
2. No firearms or weapons of any kind are permitted in the facility.
3. If visitors are or appear to be under the influence of alcohol or any drug, visitation will not be allowed.
4. Each detainee is permitted to have a maximum of two (2) visitors at a time.
5. All visitors are subject to search.
6. Visitors are not allowed to pass or attempt to pass any items to detainees.
7. Children must be under control at all times.
8. Please dress appropriately. The following is a list of unacceptable attire (but is not limited to this list):
• Mini skirts
• Short shorts
• Bare feet
• Tank tops
• Tube tops
• Sexually explicit attire
• Transparent or translucent material (see through clothes)
• Anything deemed to be inappropriate attire by the ICE officer on duty
9. Visitors are not allowed to chew gum in the facility.
10. Visitors are not allowed to carry any items into the visitation area.
11. If contraband such as drugs, alcohol, or weapons are found on any person, that person may be subject to prosecution.

Search Procedures:

All individuals requesting admittance to the facility or the visitation area are subject to a pat-down search of their person, an inspection of their belongings, and a metal scan search. Individuals refusing to cooperate with a reasonable search will not be admitted. No firearms or weapons of any kind are permitted. No electronic devices (cell phones, pagers, radios, etc.) are permitted in the secure areas of this facility. All detainees are required to submit to a search when visiting with their family members, friends, attorneys, paralegal, etc., prior to the start of the visit. Detainees will also be subject to a pat-down search upon termination of their visit.

Contacting Us

Many of the detainees held in the facility were taken into custody at one of the area’s surrounding airports and land border ports or by other ICE or DHS Components. Some detainees have been transferred in from other states. If you need information about a detainee you may call (915) 225-0700, during normal business hours. (Please do not call until the detainee has been in our custody for at least 24 hours). When you do call, please have his or her biographical information ready, including first, last and hyphenated names, any alias names he/she may use, date of birth and country of birth. If you do not have this information, we may not be able to help you.

The only information you will receive is the detainee’s alien registration number. If you need to get in touch with a detainee you must call (915) 225-1901 and leave the detainee’s full name, alien registration number and a telephone number where you can be reached. He or she will be given your message.

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA):

All FOIA/PA requests (for detainees to obtain certain information in their immigration file) must be submitted on either Form G-639 (Freedom of Information/Privacy Act Request) or in letter format, and contain the original notarized signature of the subject in question. Please complete the Form G-639 thoroughly and if writing a letter, be sure to include your full name, any other names used, date of birth, place of birth, A-number, and your address and telephone number, so that we may contact you if we have any questions.

Mail your FOIA request to:

FOIA
Office of Investigations
425 "I" Street NW, room 4038
Washington, DC 20536

Finding the status of your case:

Immigration Court:

For information about a matter before the Immigration Court you may contact them at 1-800-898-7180.

Applications for relief from removal, stay of removal, and other applications requested by the Immigration Judge must be filed directly with the Immigration Court at the address above.

Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA):

For information about a matter before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) you may contact them at (703) 605-1007 where you can obtain automated information and/or speak to a live representative during office hours. Their menu of automated options includes:

• Information about the Board's mailing address, location, and web site information
• Appeals and motions
• Transcripts and briefs
• Board decisions and stays of deportation
• Change of address

Legal Help:

Click the link for a list of pro bono representatives who might be able to assist you.

Talking with the Press/Media:

The Facility has a responsibility to protect the privacy and other rights of detainees and members of the staff; therefore, interviews will be regulated to ensure the orderly and safe operation of the Facility. Ordinarily, live television or radio interviews will not be permitted in the facility.

Correspondence and Phone Contacts with the Media:
Detainees may correspond with the media and may use facility telephones at their own expense to call the media.

Personal Interviews:
A news media representative who desires to conduct an interview with a detainee must apply in writing to the El Paso Office of Detention and Removal, indicating familiarity with and agreement to comply with the rules and regulations of the Facility as provided to that person by staff.

Detainee Consent:
A detainee has the right not to be interviewed, photographed, or recorded by the media. Before interviewing, photographing, or recording the voice of a detainee, a visiting representative of the media must obtain written permission from that individual.

Public Affairs Office:

For press inquiries, please contact the Public Affairs Office of the El Paso Field Office at (915) 231-3489

Feedback:

We strive to provide quality service to people in our custody, their loved ones and friends, and to their official representatives. If we have not lived up to this commitment, we would like to know. If we have met or exceeded your expectations, please let us know that as well. To comment on the services provided at this office, please write to the Assistant Field Office Director Detention Management, El Paso Processing Center, and ATTN: Service Feedback at 8915 Montana Ave., El Paso, TX, 79925

If you feel you were mistreated by an immigration employee, or wish to make a complaint of misconduct by an immigration or contract facility employee:

• Call the toll-free Joint Intake Center Hotline at 1-877-2INTAKE.
• FAX the JIC at 202-344-3390
• Write to the JIC at
  P.O. Box 14475
  1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
  Washington, DC 20044
• Send an e-mail message to the JIC at Joint.Intake@dhs.gov
• Contact the DHS/OIG by calling 1-800-323-8603
• Write to the Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20528
  Attn: Office of Inspector General, Hotline
• Send an email to DHSoighotline@dhs.gov

Local Procedures

Bonds:

To post a Departure or Delivery Bond:

These bonds are posted when a person has been placed into Removal/Deportation Proceedings while in the United States. The person supplying the bond money must show proof of identity. This person (the obligor) is responsible for ensuring that the alien presents himself before an officer or agent of this agency whenever a request is made. For bond information, please call (915) 225-0707 and ask to speak to the Deportation Officer handling the case. You must have the last name of the detainee and alien registration number before calling.

Commissary:

Commissary is not available at this facility.

Mail:

The quantity of correspondence a detainee may receive or send at his/her own expense will not be limited. For reasons of safety, security, and orderly operation of the EPC, non-correspondence mail (such as packages and publications) will be subject to certain restrictions. All outgoing mail must have a return address with the detainee’s name, alien registration number, and complete address of the facility clearly written on the envelope.

Indigent detainees will be permitted to mail a reasonable amount of mail each week, including at least five (5) pieces of special correspondence and three pieces of general correspondence.

Receiving Mail:

Staff will open and inspect incoming general correspondence and other mail (including packages and publications) in the presence of the detainee. Incoming general correspondence may be read to the extent necessary to maintain security, as authorized by the AFOD.

Inspection is generally for the purpose of detecting contraband. The reading of mail, may be conducted at random this requires approval of the AFOD. Mail may also be read when a specific security concern arises with respect to an individual detainee, to reveal such information as escape plots plans to commit illegal acts, plans to violate institution rules, etc.

“Special correspondence” is the term for detainees’ written communication to or from private attorneys and other legal representatives; government attorneys; judges, courts; embassies and consulates; the President and Vice-President of the United States, members of Congress, the Department of Homeland Security (including ICE and the Office of the Inspector General); the U.S. Public Health Service; administrators of grievance systems; and representatives of the news media. Correspondence will only be treated as special correspondence if the title and office of the sender are clearly identified on the envelope, indicating that the correspondence is special. All inspection of special correspondence will be opened in the presence of the detainee.

Staff will neither read nor copy special correspondence. The inspection will be limited to the purpose of detecting physical contraband and confirming that any enclosures qualify as special correspondence.

When a detainee departs the facility, his or her mail is sent to the forwarding address. If no forwarding address is provided, the mail is endorsed, "No Forwarding Address, Return to Sender", and then returned to the Post Office.

Medical Care:

The facility is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with qualified medical staff of United States Division of Immigration Health Services (USDIHS). They are responsible for the medical services provided at the facility. If a medical emergency arises that the USDIHS staff is unable to control or is beyond the scope of their practice, or the detainee is in need of more comprehensive care, the detainee will be referred to the nearest emergency medical facility.

Money:

Detainee Sending Money Out:

Detainees are cautioned not to send cash through the mail. To send money, the detainee should contact the Supervisory Immigration Enforcement Agent and he/she will make arrangements to purchase a money order that can be mailed.

Receiving Money:

An ICE Agent will issue a receipt to a detainee who receives, cash, money order or check over the allowed amount of $100.00. This will be in accordance with the “Property and Funds Standard.”

Sending and Receiving Packages:

Detainees will not be allowed to receive or send packages without advance arrangements approved by the AFOD or designee. The detainee will pay postage for packages and oversized or overweight mail. In some cases, the agency may pay for an indigent detainee to send packages within the United States.

Religious Services and Observances:

It is the policy of the EPC to provide detainees of all faith groups with reasonable and equitable opportunities to participate in the practices of their faith, limited only by the constraints of safety, security, the orderly operation of the facility and budgetary limitations. These opportunities will exist for all detainees equally, regardless of the number of practitioners of a given religion.

Smoking:

This is a non-smoking facility. No cigarettes, tobacco, or smoking paraphernalia is allowed.

Making Telephone Calls:

Telephones are located throughout the facility and can only be utilized with a prepaid telephone card. Vending machines for prepaid telephone cards are located outside of the Dining Facility. Phone cards may be purchased after leaving the Dining Facility during mealtime. These cards may be used for all calls, local, national and international long distance calls. The cost of the card will be deducted from the detainee personal account. Only facility purchased cards may be used in facility phones – detainees cannot use personal phone cards. International, national and local collect calls may be made on these phones as well. All detainee calls are suspended at count time, in the event of an emergency and/or when the staff determines it is necessary to ensure the safety of officers and detainees at the facility

Detainees with hearing and/or speech disabilities and detainees, who wish to communicate with parties who have such disabilities, are afforded access to a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD). Telephones are available for detainees from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. providing there is no safety or security issue, or emergency situations, which will prevent the use of phones.

Routine telephone calls to attorneys are not considered to be emergencies. Indigent detainees will be allowed direct and collect calls, relating to the detainee’s immigration case or other legal matters, including consultation calls, calls to consular/embassy officials and family emergencies.

Calling a Detainee:

Detainees cannot receive incoming calls. In case of family or other emergencies involving a detainee, the following number can be called: (915) 225-1901.

The facility will take and deliver telephone messages to detainees as promptly as possible. When the facility receives an emergency telephone call for a detainee, the caller’s name and telephone number will be obtained and given to the detainee as soon as possible. The detainee will be permitted to return the emergency call as soon as reasonably possible within the constraints of security and safety. The facility shall enable indigent detainees to make a return emergency call.

Consular and Attorney Phone Calls:

Detainees can call their consulates or embassies free of charge, as well as several pro bono (free) legal organizations. Those numbers are posted in the housing areas and several other areas throughout the facility.

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