IRS Illegally Shared 42,695 Tax Records with ICE, Court Rules
A court ruled IRS illegally shared 42,695 taxpayer records with ICE in 2025.
Why it matters: Tax confidentiality is protected by law, limiting data sharing with immigration agencies. Legal teams must understand these boundaries to avoid privacy breaches and liability.
- IRS shared 42,695 confidential taxpayer records with ICE in 2025, violating Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code.
- ICE initially requested 1.28 million records; IRS provided a fraction.
- A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction in February 2026 stopping further IRS data sharing with DHS and ICE.
- In September 2026, the D.C. Circuit Court upheld the injunction, confirming IRS breached tax privacy law.
In 2025, ICE requested over 1.28 million confidential taxpayer records from the IRS to support immigration enforcement. By August, the IRS had disclosed 42,695 records. Federal courts ruled this disclosure violated Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, which strictly controls taxpayer information sharing.
A federal judge stated the IRS shared information "without satisfying the legal criteria," breaching privacy protections, as detailed in a Fortune report.
In February 2026, a preliminary injunction halted the IRS’s data-sharing agreement with DHS and ICE, preventing further disclosures pending review, according to FindLaw.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit affirmed the injunction in September 2026. The court found IRS’s disclosures "indisputably contravene" Section 6103, reaffirming taxpayer confidentiality safeguards, as explained by Brookings.
Lisa Gilbert, Co-President of Public Citizen, warned the disclosure risks: “Sharing private taxpayer data can endanger lives if used to track down individuals.”
For legal professionals, especially general counsel and legal operations leaders, this highlights the importance of vigilance around data privacy compliance when federal agencies request sensitive information. Improper disclosures can expose corporations and individuals to significant legal risk.
The ruling currently bars further IRS disclosures to ICE and DHS. How these agencies will proceed or revise data-sharing policies remains to be seen as legal scrutiny continues.
By the numbers:
- 42,695 — Taxpayer records improperly shared by IRS with ICE in 2025
- 1.28 million — Number of records ICE initially requested from IRS
- February 2026 — Date preliminary injunction halted IRS data sharing
- September 2026 — Date D.C. Circuit Court upheld injunction
What's next: Federal agencies may amend data-sharing protocols in response to court rulings; further litigation or regulatory guidance on IRS data privacy is likely.