Swiss woman detained by ICE at Dallas Airport

A 23-year-old Zurich woman is in US immigration detention after ICE agents arrested her at Dallas Airport, where she was travelling to a family event. She is married to a US citizen and had applied for a Green Card, but is now being held pending deportation.

The Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed the case. The Swiss Consulate-General in Atlanta is in contact with US authorities and the woman’s family. The FDFA says it cannot secure her release or intervene in US legal proceedings, which Switzerland respects.

The arrest comes as her residence permit expired in November while her application was still being processed, according to her family. She had been unable to leave the United States during that process. Her relatives are now preparing for her possible deportation to Switzerland, while US immigration proceedings determine what happens next.

Her path from Switzerland to the US began in 2023, when she arrived as an au pair. During her stay, she met the man who would become her husband. The couple married in mid-2025, and she then applied for permanent residence, commonly known as a Green Card.

The application process shaped her ability to travel. According to her family, she could not leave the US while her case was pending. Her residence permit expired in November, leaving her in a precarious position as she waited for the application to proceed.

The arrest happened at Dallas Airport last Friday, as she was heading to a family event. Watson reported that three ICE officers took her into custody. Her case highlights the practical stakes for a Swiss national whose plans to live in the United States are tied to an immigration application and marriage to a US citizen. For now, she remains in detention as her family prepares for the prospect of her return to Switzerland.

Her relatives say the 23-year-old was transferred between detention facilities in Texas and Oklahoma after her arrest. They told Watson she was first taken to a deportation detention centre, then moved to a prison in Oklahoma. The family said she was handcuffed at her hands and feet and described her treatment there as being “treated like a dangerous criminal”.

She is believed to have returned to a deportation detention centre near Dallas. According to her family, she shares a room there with 70 other women. These details come from relatives’ account, as reported by Watson.

The reported transfers have left her family preparing for her imminent deportation to Switzerland. Her situation remains tied to US immigration proceedings, while the Swiss consulate maintains contact with the relevant authorities and her relatives. The FDFA has confirmed the case but says privacy rules prevent it from providing further information. Its role, it says, does not include intervening in the legal process or arranging her release.

Leaving the US voluntarily could carry a lasting consequence: a re-entry ban lasting several years, according to lawyers cited by Watson. Some lawyers believe the woman may have little choice but to depart voluntarily. Her family is preparing for her possible deportation to Switzerland.

An immigration lawyer interviewed by Watson said arrests of people with pending Green Card applications only became standard practice from President Donald Trump’s second term. The lawyer described the approach as a political manoeuvre and an attempt to “bring immigration to the United States to zero”.

For the woman’s relatives, the immediate focus is her return and the prospect of a ban that could prevent her from coming back to the US for years. Switzerland’s diplomatic response is limited to consular contact: the Consulate-General in Atlanta is speaking with US authorities and the family, while the FDFA says it respects the US legal system and cannot intervene in the proceedings. Her application and detention now sit within that US process.