Virginia Sanctuary Status and ICE Detainer Cooperation Rules

Virginia has not adopted a statewide sanctuary law. Va. Code § 19.2-83.2 directs jail officers to ascertain the citizenship of an inmate charged with a crime and to query U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and § 53.1-218 requires officials to notify federal immigration authorities when an alien is committed to a correctional facility. Under § 53.1-220.2, a jail or facility may transfer custody of an inmate to ICE no more than five days before the scheduled release date upon receipt of an ICE detainer. An ICE detainer is a request, not a mandate to hold someone otherwise eligible for release.

These are duties on jail and correctional officials rather than offenses carrying penalties. An ICE detainer alone does not authorize holding an inmate past the point of lawful release; officials rely on the statutory transfer window instead.