Arizona Immigration Detention Centers: Locations, Bond, and Visits

Arizona’s immigration detention centers are clustered in Pinal County, about an hour south of Phoenix, and if someone you know has been picked up by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, they are most likely being held at one of three facilities in the Eloy-Florence corridor. The fastest way to confirm where they are is ICE’s Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov. From there, families generally need to work through four things in order: locating the person, finding out whether they can be released on bond, getting them a lawyer, and setting up visits, phone calls, and commissary money.

The Three Active Facilities

Eloy Detention Center in Eloy, operated by CoreCivic under contract with ICE. It holds adult men and women, including asylum seekers and people in administrative removal proceedings.¹
Florence Service Processing Center in Florence, government-owned and managed directly by ICE. Sometimes called the Florence Detention Center.²
Central Arizona Florence Correctional Center, also in Florence, privately managed under ICE’s Phoenix Field Office and listed as active as of March 2026.³

Two additional sites, a former state prison in Marana purchased by Management and Training Corporation and a proposed facility in Surprise, were under review in early 2026 but had not finalized ICE contracts at that time.

The concentration of facilities in one corridor helps ICE with transport but is hard on families. A round trip from Phoenix runs about 130 miles, and visitors coming from Tucson or farther out can lose a full day to the drive. Confirm exactly where the person is before you leave.

How to Find Someone in ICE Custody

Before you search, gather what you can:

The person’s Alien Registration Number (A-Number), a nine-digit number that appears on immigration paperwork such as a Notice to Appear, work authorization card, or permanent resident card. If it has fewer than nine digits, add zeros at the front.⁴
Their full legal name as it was recorded at processing. Small differences in spelling or a missing hyphen will return no results.
Their country of birth, which the locator requires for either search method.
Their date of birth, needed if you are searching by name instead of A-Number.

The locator offers two search paths. The A-Number search takes the nine-digit code plus country of birth. The biographical search takes first name, last name, and country of birth, with date of birth as an optional field that helps narrow the results. The system only returns people currently in ICE custody or those held by Customs and Border Protection for more than 48 hours, and it cannot be used to search for anyone under 18.⁴

A successful search returns the name and address of the facility. If the system says the person is not in custody, they may have been released, deported, or transferred so recently the database has not updated. Transfers between Arizona facilities can take several hours to appear. Try again the next day before assuming the worst.

If you cannot use the website, call the ICE Detention Reporting and Information Line at 1-888-351-4024. If you already know the person is at the Florence Service Processing Center, you can call the facility directly at (520) 868-5862 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.²

Bond and Release

Not everyone in ICE detention can be released on bond. Federal law splits detainees into two groups.

Discretionary Bond

Under 8 U.S.C. 1226(a), ICE has discretion to release a detained person on bond set at a statutory minimum of $1,500. In practice, bonds typically start at $5,000 and commonly run up to $15,000 or more, depending on community ties, immigration history, and perceived flight risk. An immigration judge can adjust the amount at a bond hearing.⁵

Mandatory Detention

People with aggravated felony convictions, certain controlled substance offenses, firearms offenses, or certain national security-related grounds are subject to mandatory detention. In those cases ICE is required by statute to keep the person in custody throughout the proceedings, and no bond is available.⁵

Requesting a Bond Hearing

A request for a bond hearing goes to the immigration court with jurisdiction over the detention facility. There is no filing fee, and the request can be made in writing or orally. It should include the person’s full name, A-Number, the bond amount ICE set, and the facility’s location. If a judge has already ruled on bond, any later request must be in writing and must show that circumstances have materially changed.⁶

Paying the Bond

To post a cash bond, someone outside detention, called the obligor, fills out Form I-352 and pays by cashier’s check, certified check, or money order. Personal checks and cash are not accepted. The obligor must certify that the funds are not from illegal activity. If the detainee attends all required hearings and the bond is eventually cancelled, ICE refunds the deposit plus any accrued interest to the obligor.⁷

A surety bond through a licensed bail bond agent is an alternative. Agents typically charge 15 to 20 percent of the bond amount as a non-refundable premium, which can make sense when the full cash amount is out of reach.

Getting a Lawyer

The most important thing to understand about immigration court is that the government does not provide a free attorney. People in removal proceedings have the right to hire counsel at their own expense, but if they cannot afford a lawyer, they go it alone.⁸ Unrepresented detainees lose their cases at dramatically higher rates than those with attorneys.

The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project is a nonprofit that provides free legal education and representation to adults and children in Arizona immigration detention. In early 2026 the organization launched a pilot program offering free legal representation to detained individuals regardless of demographics or the strength of the legal claim.⁹ Contact them as early as possible.

Detained people are entitled to free phone calls to legal service providers on ICE’s approved list, to consular officials, to the immigration court, and to the DHS Office of Inspector General. Facilities cannot charge for these calls, even when the detainee has no money in their commissary account.¹⁰ Attorneys can also arrange confidential video meetings through ICE’s Virtual Attorney Visitation program at no cost.¹¹

Visits, Phone Calls, and Money

In-Person Visits

Visitation schedules vary by facility. At the Florence Service Processing Center, friends and family can visit Monday through Friday from noon to 7 p.m. and on weekends and federal holidays from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Attorney visits run seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.² Other facilities set their own hours. Call ahead.

Every adult visitor needs photo ID. A valid driver’s license or unexpired passport works. The dress code is enforced: shorts and skirts must reach at least mid-thigh, sheer clothing is prohibited, and shirts must cover the midriff and have sleeves. Muscle shirts, tube tops, and anything displaying gang colors will get you turned away.¹²

Phone Calls

You cannot call a detained person directly. All calls are outbound, placed by the detainee through the facility’s phone system. The contracted provider for ICE communication services is Talton Communications.¹³ Calls are billed by the minute, so setting up a prepaid account with the provider in advance keeps calls from dropping mid-conversation.

If you need to get an urgent message to someone at the Florence Service Processing Center, call (520) 868-8388 with the detainee’s full name, A-Number, and your contact information.²

Sending Money

Detainees use commissary accounts for snacks, hygiene items, and phone credits. Money can be sent through Western Union using the facility’s specific code along with the detainee’s commissary number followed by their last name. You can send online, by phone at 1-800-634-3422, or at a walk-in Western Union location. Money orders and cashier’s checks can also be mailed to the facility’s lockbox address. Personal checks and cash are not accepted.¹⁴

Confirm the commissary number before sending. A wrong number can route the deposit to another detainee’s account, and corrections take weeks.

Mail is restrictive. Most Arizona facilities accept plain letters and a limited number of standard-sized photos. Do not put letters, cards, or photos in the same envelope as a money order sent to the lockbox address; those items will not reach the detainee or be returned.¹⁴ Packages with food, electronics, or books are generally prohibited. If the person needs civilian clothes for court or release, coordinate with the facility’s property officer.

Medical Care and Reporting Problems

Federal detention standards require every detainee to receive a medical, dental, and mental health screening within 12 hours of arriving at an ICE facility.¹⁵ After that, detainees can request sick calls and ongoing care, though quality and response times vary between facilities.

If a detainee experiences abuse, mistreatment, or medical neglect, there are formal channels. Every facility must provide an internal grievance system. Beyond that, complaints about staff misconduct, physical or sexual abuse, or civil rights violations can go directly to the DHS Office of Inspector General by calling 1-800-323-8603 or writing to the OIG in Washington, D.C. Reports can be made anonymously.¹⁶ For medical concerns, families can also call the ICE Detention Reporting and Information Line at 1-888-351-4024.

Detainees are entitled to contact their home country’s consulate, and facilities must allow free calls to consular offices. Consulates can sometimes intervene with facility management, connect families with legal resources, or help produce identity documents needed for the immigration case.¹⁰

1
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Eloy Detention Center
2
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Florence Service Processing Center
3
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Central Arizona Florence Correctional Center
4
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Online Detainee Locator System
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1226 – Apprehension and Detention of Aliens
6
Executive Office for Immigration Review. EOIR Policy Manual – 8.3 Bond Proceedings
7
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Immigration Bond – Form I-352
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1362 – Right to Counsel
9
Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project. Providing Free Legal and Social Services for Immigrants Facing Removal
10
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE/DRO Detention Standard – Telephone Access
11
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Virtual Attorney Visitation Program
12
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE/DRO Detention Standard – Visitation
13
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE Communication Services
14
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Instructions for Depositing Money into Detainee Trust
15
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. PBNDS 2011 – 4.3 Medical Care
16
DHS Office of Inspector General. OIG Hotline