Is my hearing downtown, at Krome or somewhere else?
Miami has two court listings. This one sits downtown at 333 S. Miami Avenue. The Miami Krome (Detained) Immigration Court sits in the detention center at 18201 SW 12th Street and is a different location. Your latest Notice of Hearing decides. Confirm it on the automated line, 1-800-898-7180, as our guide to finding your court and hearing date explains, and call the court at 305-789-4221 if anything differs. If someone was released from detention, do not assume the case moved with them: check the notice, and update the address. A judge's name in EOIR's list for this court shows a listing, not that the judge has your case.
How do I get into the building, and why do the elevators matter?
EOIR's page has a detail worth knowing: elevator access to the court floors runs from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and no visitors are allowed on those floors after security has left for the day. So you cannot simply go up early and wait, and an afternoon filing trip needs a margin. Public hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Everyone passes a metal detector and bag screening on each visit, and you may be asked to remove your shoes. EOIR says paid public parking is next to the building and gives no transit information. You must be through security and in the courtroom at the scheduled time; a slow line or elevator is not an excuse under the Policy Manual.
I also have an ICE check-in. Is that at the court?
No. ICE lists its Miami check-in location at 2805 SW 145th Avenue, Miramar, Florida, with appointment hours of 8 a.m. to noon. A hearing before a judge and an ICE check-in are different obligations, each with its own date, and meeting one does not satisfy the other. If you have both on one day, tell a lawyer early, because you cannot be in two places at once and the court will not treat an ICE appointment as an automatic excuse. ICE's listing changes, so follow the paper ICE gave you. Bring the same care to mailings: an address change must reach the court, not just ICE, on Form EOIR-33 within five days.
How do I file papers with this court before my hearing?
Allow for the elevators, since the window closes at 4 p.m. It opens at 8 a.m., Monday to Friday except federal holidays. If you have no lawyer and file on paper, give DHS a copy too, and add a signed proof of service naming the office, address, date, method and documents; a missing one can get the filing returned. For Miami, the ICE handout we checked gives an OPLA address in Puerto Rico, which we cannot confirm, so check the address on DHS's own papers or ask the court. A ruling at a master calendar hearing takes filing 15 days ahead; otherwise an unrepresented, non-detained person may file in open court. An individual hearing needs 30 days. A filing counts when received, not when mailed. For proof of filing, hand in or send an extra copy marked CONFORMED COPY; RETURN TO SENDER with a prepaid return envelope, because the court issues no receipts. Do not email evidence to Miami.Immigration.Court@usdoj.gov; unrequested email is discarded. Asylum.Clock.Miami@usdoj.gov is only for work-permit clock requests, with your name, A-number and the reason. Form EOIR-33 is due within five days of a move.
Can ICE arrest someone at this court?
Yes, in limited cases, and the recent rulings help less than a headline suggests. They concern arrests in or near immigration courts. A California court vacated ICE's 2025 policy in Pablo Sequen v. Albarran on June 23, 2026, and refused to pause that on July 10. A New York court did the same in part on September 30, 2026, in African Communities Together v. Venturella, which refused to limit relief to the plaintiffs. Both leave ICE's April 2021 guidance in place, and it still allows arrests for reasons such as a national security threat or a danger to public safety. Neither ruling should be read as covering an ICE check-in in Miramar. We found no later appeals ruling as of October 30, 2026. Staying away is the worse risk, since a missed hearing can bring an order of removal in your absence. See a lawyer before you go, particularly if you have an old order or a criminal record.
A relative was arrested in South Florida. Where do I start?
Find the place of detention first, because the bond court follows it. Search ICE's Online Detainee Locator at ice.gov/locator with the country of birth plus the A-number, or the full name and date of birth. People under 18 are not shown, and a new arrest may not appear at once. South Florida cases often involve Krome or the Broward Transitional Center, but a person can be held elsewhere or moved. Whether a judge can grant bond in Florida is unsettled as of October 30, 2026. The Eleventh Circuit ruled against the government in Hernandez Alvarez v. Warden, but a judge withheld the mandate on May 13, 2026, and we could not confirm what followed. An immigration judge may refuse to hear the request under the Board's Matter of Yajure Hurtado. If so, ask a lawyer that day about a federal habeas case; see our bond hearing guide. ICE lists bond offices at Krome, 305-207-2001, and Miramar, 954-843-5800, without hours or required documents, so call first.
My hearing is close. What should I do this week?
Reconfirm the date and suite, plan for parking and the elevators, and put your Notice to Appear and every notice in one folder. For a first appearance, read our master calendar hearing guide; for a trial date, the individual hearing guide covers the filing deadlines, which fall well before the hearing itself. Ask early for a Russian interpreter if your notice or file does not show one. Our attorney Anna Tsibel speaks Russian, is licensed by the California bar and focuses on asylum and deportation defense. Our main office is in Boca Raton: see Miami-area representation or what to expect in Miami immigration court, or request a consultation.