Providers say the expiring federal deal leaves them unsure whether they can keep visiting shelters or representing children who arrived without parents or guardians.
In a Harlingen, Texas, immigration court, the deadline was not abstract. Children and teenagers appeared for hearings Friday as lawyers warned that a federal legal-services contract was reaching its final day, according to the Associated Press.
The contract pays a nationwide network of nearly 100 legal groups that serve roughly 20,000 unaccompanied migrant children. Advocates say tens of thousands of children who came to the United States without a parent or guardian could face court with less help if the Trump administration lets the agreement lapse.
The courtroom showed what is at stake
AP described dozens of children and teenagers arriving at the Harlingen court Friday. Some waited with puzzles, action figures and coloring books. One 8-year-old boy walked into court holding an Etch-a-Sketch before sitting beside his attorney.
Lauren Fisher Flores, an attorney with the American Bar Association’s ProBar project, told the court that the contract’s expiration could end legal information sessions normally provided to children in shelters. She also said lawyers might no longer be able to provide Friend of the Court assistance for children who arrive without counsel.
That limited assistance can still matter. It can help a child understand a hearing, follow a judge’s question or make clear to the court that the child has no lawyer. AP reported that the judge thanked Fisher Flores and said she was sorry to hear the news.
What the expiring contract covered
The agreement funded legal services for children who entered the U.S. without a parent or guardian. Those children are placed in federal care while their immigration cases proceed, often as officials work through sponsor or family-placement questions.
Under the deal, legal groups could enter government-funded shelters, explain children’s legal rights and directly represent them in removal proceedings. Providers also described shelter access as a way to keep outside eyes on children’s cases and spot urgent legal or welfare concerns.
Friday marked the final day of the contract. Providers told AP they did not know what would happen the following Monday, including whether lawyers could keep visiting children in shelters or whether any replacement system would be in place.
The Trump administration did not immediately respond to AP’s request for comment on why it was allowing the contract to expire.
Why a lawyer can change a child’s case
Immigration court is civil court, so people facing removal are not automatically given a government-appointed attorney. For a child, that can mean having to track deadlines, answer questions, gather documents and explain fear of return without the guidance an adult might struggle to manage.
Legal representation does not guarantee that a child will be allowed to remain in the United States. Judges still decide cases under immigration law. But lawyers can identify possible forms of relief, prepare filings and explain what is happening before a decision is made.
Advocates told AP that losing the funded network could make deportation more likely for children who cannot navigate the process alone.
Providers were already under financial strain
The contract deadline follows months of pressure on the nonprofit groups doing the work. Providers told AP they had not been paid for more than half a year. They said the administration withheld reimbursements while seeking detailed client information they said they could not ethically provide.
Those funding problems have already changed operations. ProBar in South Texas laid off 20% of its staff this week. Mid-South Immigration Advocates, based in Memphis, said it is owed more than $500,000 for work with children and has laid off seven employees since 2025.
Sally Joyner, Mid-South’s legal director, said the organization helps more than 400 unaccompanied minors. According to AP, it plans to close its physical offices in Nashville and Memphis at the end of September and expects the law firm itself may soon shut down.
Some organizations are seeking private donations to continue representing current clients. Providers said that may preserve help in some cases, but it would not immediately replace a national federal contract serving shelters and courts across the country.
The unanswered questions now
The immediate issue is whether any successor arrangement will be announced. Providers said they did not know whether they could continue seeing clients in shelters after the deadline or how existing cases would be handled without the contract.
Another question is how immigration courts will proceed if more children appear without lawyers. AP did not report that the court system would pause because the contract expired.
The lapse comes as the Trump administration has pushed for mass deportations. AP reported that migrant children became a target for removal during the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term.
For now, the practical effect is uncertainty. A contract that sounds bureaucratic is tied to whether children in federal care can receive legal orientation, shelter visits and courtroom representation before decisions that may determine whether they remain in the United States.
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