The Union government has directed all states and Union Territories to set up detention centres “for the purpose of restricting the movement” of undocumented migrants till they are deported.

The directions were part of the Immigration and Foreigners Order, 2025, notified by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday.

The order was notified under the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, which was passed by the Parliament in April, replacing the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920, the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939, the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Immigration Carriers’ Liability Act, 2000.

Under the order, the Centre and state governments have been directed to “take steps to detect illegal migrants in India” from “time to time” by examining foreigners, inspecting any aircraft or other mode of transport if the authorities believe that an undocumented migrant is travelling in it and inspecting any premises.

If an undocumented migrant is found in the country, they “shall be imposed with restrictions on movement in a holding centre or camp”, said the order, adding that authorities should take “appropriate steps” to deport them.

With the notification of the order, the Union government has also given foreigners tribunals the powers to summon any person and issue an arrest warrant against them if they fail to appear before it.

Though the order is applicable across the country, foreigners tribunals presently function only in Assam. In other states, undocumented migrants are produced before courts.

The foreigners tribunals in Assam are quasi-judicial bodies that adjudicate on matters of citizenship based on lineage and a 1971 cut-off date. They rely primarily on documents submitted by persons to establish their family’s residency in Assam or India before 1971.

The tribunals have been accused of arbitrariness and bias, and of declaring people foreigners on the basis of minor spelling mistakes, a lack of documents or lapses in memory.

On Monday, the home ministry also stated that persons may be refused permission to leave the country if their presence is required by any Indian court, or if their exit may adversely affect relations with a foreign state.

The Bureau of Immigration will maintain a list of persons who shall not be granted permission to leave India.

It also listed guidelines for employing foreigners in the private sector. It stated that without the permission of the civil authority, no foreigner should “accept employment in an undertaking in the private sector engaged in the supply of power or water or in the petroleum sector”.

“Any undertaking in the private sector engaged in the field of defence, space technology, nuclear energy or human rights or any other sector as specified in this behalf, shall not employ any foreigner without prior permission of the Central government,” stated the order.

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