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Judge Blocks IRS From Sharing Taxpayer Data With ICE, Calls Policy Unlawful

The judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking the IRS from sharing taxpayer information with ICE, concluding the agency's Address‑Sharing Policy likely violated the Administrative Procedure Act and provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. The ruling noted the IRS disclosed details on nearly 47,000 taxpayers in early August. The order halts the policy while the court reviews the matter and bars sharing tax‑return information with DHS except for narrowly defined exceptions that need judicial approval.

05:47 AM, 11/22/2025Politics

A federal judge in Washington on Friday issued a preliminary injunction preventing the Internal Revenue Service from sharing taxpayer information with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), finding the agency's address‑sharing practice likely unlawful.

'The Plaintiffs have shown a substantial likelihood that the IRS’s adoption of the Address‑Sharing Policy and the IRS’s subsequent sharing of taxpayer information with ICE were unlawful under the Administrative Procedure Act,' U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar‑Kotelly wrote in a 94‑page ruling.

The court also found that the IRS's disclosure of confidential taxpayer address information violated multiple provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. The order said the IRS disclosed information on nearly 47,000 taxpayers in early August.

The injunction temporarily pauses the policy that enabled address‑sharing while the court continues its review. It preliminarily bars the IRS, the Department of the Treasury and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent from sharing any tax‑return information with the Department of Homeland Security, although the judge outlined narrow exceptions that would require separate judicial approval.

Context and implications

The ruling arrives against a backdrop of leadership turnover at the IRS: six people have served in the agency's top role so far this year, and Scott Bessent is the current acting commissioner following leadership changes in August.

Other departments have signaled a different approach. A memo from the Department of Health and Human Services stated the department intends to share data with ICE to support immigration‑enforcement efforts, underscoring growing interagency coordination that the court's order could complicate.

Treasury and the IRS did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The injunction is preliminary; the court's ongoing review and potential appeals will determine whether the policy can resume.

What to watch next

  • The court's further proceedings and whether the preliminary injunction becomes permanent.
  • Any administrative or legislative responses from the Treasury Department, IRS or other agencies affected by the order.
  • Possible appeals that could move the dispute to a higher court.

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