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Judge Blocks IRS From Sharing Taxpayer Addresses With ICE, Citing Likely Violation of Tax Law

10:45 AM, 11/22/2025

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly has temporarily blocked the IRS from sharing taxpayers' home addresses with ICE, finding a substantial likelihood the data-sharing agreement violates the Internal Revenue Code and the IRS's confidentiality policy. The 94-page ruling, issued in a suit by the Center for Taxpayer Rights, orders the IRS to stop further unlawful transfers. ICE had requested over 1.27 million records and the IRS disclosed records after an Aug. 7 request; more than 47,000 matched individuals sought by ICE. The judge could not compel ICE or DHS to act on already-received data because they were not parties to the case.

A federal judge has barred the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from transferring taxpayers' home address information to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when those records could identify potentially undocumented individuals.

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly issued a 94-page decision in a lawsuit brought by the Center for Taxpayer Rights, concluding there was a "substantial likelihood" that the IRS's data-sharing arrangement with ICE violated provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and conflicted with the IRS's longstanding policy of strict confidentiality. The judge ordered the IRS to stop any further transfers she deemed unlawful.

Rationale of the Ruling

Kollar-Kotelly found the IRS had "failed to consider the reliance interests that were engendered by its prior policy of strict confidentiality, and failed to provide a reasoned explanation for the new Policy." In other words, the court concluded the IRS did not adequately explain why it departed from its prior approach or account for taxpayers' expectations of privacy.

Scope and Limits

The judge's order prevents the IRS from making additional unlawful disclosures to ICE, but it does not require ICE or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to take action regarding the information already received. Because ICE and DHS were not parties to the lawsuit, Kollar-Kotelly said she could not compel those agencies to act on records the IRS provided earlier.

What Was Shared

Earlier this year, ICE requested more than 1.27 million records from the IRS, seeking personal data such as home addresses, dates of birth, fingerprint identification numbers and other details. Following an Aug. 7 request, the IRS disclosed a subset of those records to ICE; more than 47,000 of the disclosed records matched profiles of individuals sought by the agency.

Context

The ruling arrives amid heightened immigration enforcement and efforts by the administration to expand deportations and tighten border security. Those efforts have generated multiple legal challenges and court rulings that, at times, have limited enforcement measures.

Key takeaway: The court concluded the IRS likely violated federal tax confidentiality requirements and ordered a halt to further unlawful data transfers to ICE, while stopping short of directing how ICE or DHS must handle information already received.

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Judge Blocks IRS From Sharing Taxpayer Addresses With ICE, Citing Likely Violation of Tax Law - CRBC News