During the 2026 partial Department of Homeland Security shutdown, ICE and TSA had different funding available. A federal deportation-officer posting reported by Forbes listed base pay of about $52,000 to $84,000, depending on location and experience, plus advertised hiring incentives. That range does not establish what ICE officers deployed at airports actually earned. TSA employees who worked without current paychecks were owed delayed pay when funding resumed.
How much do ICE agents make?
Forbes reported on March 24, 2026, that a federal deportation-officer job posting listed a base salary range of approximately $52,000 to $84,000, varying with location and experience. Forbes also described incentives ICE had used, including signing bonuses of up to $50,000, overtime pay, student loan forgiveness and enhanced retirement benefits. The posting and incentives describe recruitment terms—not an audited average or guaranteed compensation for every officer. Forbes
The figures also do not answer how much ICE officers sent to airports earned. Forbes said the Department of Homeland Security did not provide details about compensation for those deployed officers. The deportation-officer posting is therefore a useful reference for a job category, not proof of individual airport-assignment pay.
Why were ICE and TSA treated differently during the shutdown?
The difference was the money available to each agency during that particular lapse, not a blanket exemption for ICE from the appropriations process. PolitiFact reported on March 23, 2026, that ICE could draw on funds provided by the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act, while TSA remained without funding. ICE and Customs and Border Protection still needed appropriations for their remaining funding. PolitiFact
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PolitiFact reported that the law made about $75 billion available to ICE over four years: $45 billion for immigration detention beds and $30 billion for hiring 10,000 ICE employees, facility upgrades and related needs. Those are reported allocations over four years, not a statement that the entire amount was spent during the shutdown. PolitiFact
TSA, meanwhile, continued operating without funding during the lapse. PolitiFact reported that about 95% of TSA’s roughly 60,000 employees were considered essential, so many had to keep reporting to work. PolitiFact
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What did “TSA workers go without pay” mean?
It meant TSA employees working during the funding lapse did not receive current paychecks—not that their wages were permanently forfeited. PolitiFact noted that a 2019 law requires federal employees to receive back pay once funding resumes. A missed paycheck can still create immediate financial strain, even when the wages are owed later. PolitiFact
The figures available are snapshots, not one cumulative count. The Associated Press reported on March 21 that roughly 50,000 TSA employees were working without pay, about 10% of officers had missed work nationwide on the preceding Thursday, and at least 376 officers had quit since the shutdown began. Associated Press
Later, an American Federation of Government Employees witness told the House Committee on Homeland Security that daily call-outs rose from normally below 2% to 11% nationwide by mid-March, and that at least 1,000 additional transportation security officers had quit by the shutdown’s end. The witness also cited waits exceeding four and a half hours at some airports. These are retrospective claims in congressional testimony, not an independent administrative tally. The figures come from different time points and should not be added together. House Committee on Homeland Security testimony
Were ICE officers doing TSA screening at airports?
ICE officers were not simply replacing trained TSA screeners. On March 22, 2026, White House border czar Tom Homan said on CNN’s State of the Union: “I don’t see an ICE agent looking at an X-ray machine, because we’re not trained in that.” He said ICE agents could help secure exits. PolitiFact
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An AFGE witness later characterized ICE agents at checkpoints as lacking screening training and described their presence as unhelpful. That is the witness’s assessment in congressional testimony, rather than a neutral agency finding. House Committee on Homeland Security testimony
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to compare the pay figures fairly
| Figure | What it represents | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| About $52,000–$84,000 | Base salary range in a federal deportation-officer posting, as reported by Forbes on March 24, 2026; pay varied by location and experience. Forbes | The actual pay of an individual ICE officer, including one assigned to an airport. |
| Up to $50,000 | Maximum signing bonus among incentives Forbes said ICE had advertised. Forbes | A guaranteed bonus paid to every hire. |
| Missed TSA paychecks | Pay delayed for employees who worked during the funding lapse; federal employees were owed back pay when funding resumed. PolitiFact | An annual salary figure or permanent loss of wages. |
The comparison is between a published job-posting salary range and temporarily delayed paychecks—not between verified earnings for airport-deployed ICE officers and TSA officers. Funding sources differed during the lapse, but that alone does not establish any individual worker’s pay.
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Was extra pay proposed for TSA workers?
On March 24, 2026, Senator Ruben Gallego announced a bill proposing a 10% bonus for TSA and other DHS workers who reported during the shutdown without pay. The press release described a proposal; it does not establish that the bonus became law or was paid. Gallego’s press release
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