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(CNN) -
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will stop fining undocumented immigrants who have not left the United States, the agency announced Friday.
It is a decision that revokes the policy implemented by the government of former President Donald Trump that threatened immigrants with debts of thousands of dollars before the federal government.
ICE officials said the agency rescinded the two orders from the Trump administration on the collection of economic sanctions, after determining that the policy was "ineffective."
They also noted that the entity intends to cancel the fines already issued to undocumented immigrants.
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The move is one of multiple changes that have moved away from hardline immigration policies implemented by the Trump administration.
In that sense, it is part of the Biden administration's effort to reduce the scope of immigration enforcement.
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"There is no indication that these sanctions have promoted compliance with the exit obligations of non-citizens," National Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.
"We can enforce our immigration laws without resorting to ineffective and unnecessary punitive measures."
ICE stopped issuing these fines as of January 20.
Friday's announcement formalizes the policy change.
ICE's fine policy under Trump
The agency began notifying some undocumented immigrants of its intention to issue fines in December 2018, following the decree of then-President Trump.
This decree asked the Department of Homeland Security to "guarantee the evaluation and collection of all fines and penalties" for persons present illegally in the United States and for those who facilitate their presence in the country.
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In July 2019, when news of the fines attracted national attention, an ICE spokesperson said the agency was "committed to using various methods of law enforcement."
This included financial penalties "to enforce US immigration law and maintain the integrity of legal orders issued by judges."
ICE fines for undocumented immigrants 2:29
ICE is authorized to impose economic sanctions on people who have not left the country for more than 20 years, but the agency did not begin applying these sanctions until 2018, according to the agency.
Ultimately, the imposition of fines on undocumented immigrants proved unsuccessful.
The agency was only able to collect about 1% of the fines issued, according to an ICE official.
The number of people detained and deported for being in the United States illegally has declined under President Joe Biden, after his administration scaled back immigration enforcement to focus on those who could pose a threat or have criminal records. criminal.
Under the Biden administration, ICE has tried to prioritize immigrants who pose a threat to national security, border security, and public safety.
The change was prompted by a decree signed by Biden shortly after taking office.
Previously, undocumented immigrants who did not comply with final deportation orders from immigration judges were subject to fines of up to US $ 799 per day, which could easily come at an extremely high cost.
People who did not voluntarily leave the United States faced a fine of $ 3,000, adjusted for inflation.
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Advocates denounced the use of the fines as unfair and retaliation against the sanctuary movement, which includes seeking refuge from immigration authorities within places of worship.
In one case, Edith Espinal, an undocumented immigrant who had taken refuge inside a church in Columbus, Ohio, received a "notice of intent to fine" from ICE for $ 497,777, which her attorney released in 2019.
Ultimately, the agency withdrew the fine, along with those of six other women living inside churches across the country, according to the National Sanctuary Collective.
"We knew these exorbitant fines were illegal and nothing more than a tool to scare our clients and retaliate against them for fighting and standing up to this administration," Espinal's attorney, Lizbeth Mateo, said after ICE revoked the fine. .
At the time, an ICE spokesperson defended the policy, saying the agency remained committed to using financial penalties as a law enforcement tool.