Immigration and Customs Enforcement has stated that detained Irish national Seamus Culleton breached federal immigration law, reports The Mirror.
The Kilkenny native, who has been held in a Texas detention facility for over five months, overstayed his original 90-day visitor allowance in 2009, reports The Mirror.
He has remained in the United States since then and was arrested last September by ICE officers, despite running a plastering business in Boston, Massachusetts.
Mr Culleton said he held a valid work permit and a Massachusetts driver’s licence, reports The Mirror.
He also said he was just one interview away from securing a Green Card after marrying US citizen Tiffany Smyth.
He is currently being housed with 72 other detainees in a tented facility at a detention centre in Texas, reports The Mirror.
In response to media coverage of his situation, ICE wrote on its official X account: “This man overstayed his visa… BY 16 YEARS. We are a nation of law and order — overstaying your visa violates federal immigration law.”
Following his detention, Mr Culleton declined deportation to Ireland, stating he was challenging the legality of his arrest on the basis that he is married to a US citizen and possessed a valid work permit, reports The Mirror.
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary at the US Department of Homeland Security, said Mr Culleton had been afforded “full due process” and that having a pending green card application and work authorisation does not amount to lawful status.
The department maintains that the Kilkenny man overstayed in 2009 under the visa waiver programme, which permits tourists to remain in the US for up to 90 days without obtaining a visa, reports The Mirror.
Ms McLaughlin added: “He failed to depart the US. He received full due process and was issued a final order of removal by an immigration judge on September 10, 2025.
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