Department: Department of Homeland Security
Location(s): Salt Lake City, Utah, Seattle, Washington, Phoenix, Arizona, Los Angeles, California, San Francisco, California, Denver, Colorado, Washington, District of Columbia, Miami, Florida, Atlanta, Georgia, Chicago, Illinois, Indianapolis, Indiana, New Orleans, Louisiana, Boston, Massachusetts, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Kansas City, Missouri, Albuquerque, New Mexico, New York, New York, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Portland, Oregon, Austin, Texas
Salary Range: $126384 - $164301 Per Year
Job Summary: This Job Opportunity Announcement is for current and permanent GS-14 (including temporary GS-15), and former GS-15 ICE employees seeking a promotion to a GS-1811-15 Criminal Investigator position. Organizational Location: These positions are located in the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, Office of Professional Responsibility, and Office of Firearms and Tactical Programs. Locations are within and outside the United States.
Major Duties:
Qualifications: This Job Opportunity Announcement is for current and permanent GS-14 (including temporary GS-15) and former GS-15 ICE employees seeking a promotion to a GS1811-15 Criminal Investigator position. By applying to this announcement, you will be considered for permanent promotions, temporary promotions, and detail positions. Some temporary promotions may be made permanent without further competition. Certain positions under this announcement are subject to additional screening requirements (i.e., national security polygraph); additional regulations apply to some positions based on location (i.e., international posts). Specialized experience is experience that equipped the candidate with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to work of the position to be filled. To qualify for the GS-15 grade level, you must possess at least one (1) full year of specialized experience at the GS-14 grade level or equivalent performing duties such as: Serving as a first line supervisor responsible for the administration, management, and execution of criminal investigative activities and personnel assigned to the field office or geographic location. Serving as a program manager for a Headquarters, HQ components, or field office program providing investigative input on national security and/or criminal investigations. Developing training and/or programs on criminal investigative techniques, methods and programmatic areas for presentation to employees, agency leadership, or other key stakeholders. Conducting and/or leading investigations regarding misconduct (criminal or administrative) of ICE personnel, their associates, contractors, and any other entity under ICE's investigative jurisdiction. Qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Qualification claims will be subject to verification. In addition to meeting the eligibility and qualification requirements, candidates must either have a prior passing score for the HSI Supervisory Situational Judgement Test (SSJT), or complete and pass the SSJT in the specified timeframe as a requirement for placement on a Certificate of Eligibles. Candidates who do not meet the HSI SSJT assessment requirements will be removed from further consideration. IMPORTANT NOTE FOR NON-COMPETITIVE CANDIATES: To be considered non-competitively, former GS-1811-15s must apply to this announcement and meet specialized experience requirements, as determined by a panel of subject matter experts (SMEs). Former or current GS-15s in other job series must apply and complete all assessments. Supervisory Situational Judgment Test (SSJT) This pass/fail online assessment measures critical leadership and interpersonal skills; candidates have two (2) hours to complete it. Candidates who passed the SSJT from a prior SA-15 or SA-14 promotional announcement will NOT be required to re-take it. Candidates required to complete the SSJT will receive email invitations on or about May 15, 2026. Anticipated SSJT timeframe: May 15, 2026 - May 26, 2026. A panel of subject matter experts is scheduled to meet in late June to review specialized experience for all candidates with a passing or prior passing SSJT result. Notification of results are anticipated after July. If you have questions regarding the assessments or assessment process, please email SA15Promotion@ice.dhs.gov for further assistance. All dates listed in this section are subject to change. While every attempt will be made to adhere to the dates listed above, there may be instances in which a change is required. Issues encountered with assessment completion must be reported before the assessment window closes in order to be considered and/or addressed for this promotional cycle. Overseas Assignments Offer Various Allowances - Special Notes: ICE Attache or Deputy Attache These are overseas limited term assignments. The initial tour for this position may be up to three (3) years as designated by the U.S. Department of State, not to exceed five (5) years or maximum total ten (10) years. Upon completion of the assignment, selectee will return to the U.S. to a similar position and grade as that held prior to this assignment and/or apply to another position. This assignment may be terminated or extended at any time depending on the needs of the agency. Allowance of Post Hardship Differential Pay, Special Needs Differential, Relocation Incentive Pay, Cost of Living, Danger or Retention pay may be included depending on overseas locations. Selectee must successfully complete pre-employment clearance and all phases of the pre-deployment process which include issuance of passport/and or visa (if applicable), medical clearance, mandatory pre-departure (if applicable), and security overseas training. Salary: The salary range indicated in this announcement reflects the lowest and highest potential salaries for this position. The actual salary range will be based on the applicable locality pay for the selected duty location. General Schedule locality pay tables may be found under Salaries & Wages. These are non-bargaining unit positions. These are non-bargaining unit positions. Locations: While the locations for this announcement are identified as location negotiable after selection, duty locations that are available and will be offered will be based on needs of the agency and no specific location is guaranteed. National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office. The Department of Homeland Security encourages persons with disabilities to apply, to include persons with intellectual, severe physical or psychiatric disabilities, as defined by 5 CFR 213.3102(u), and/or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30 percent or more as defined by 5 CFR 315.707. Veterans, Peace Corps, VISTA volunteers, and persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility for non-competitive appointment and to understand the required documentation, click on the links above or contact the Servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement.
How to Apply: Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. The complete initial Application must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 05/04/2026. The vacancy questionnaire includes four short, free-response essay questions. This provides an opportunity for you to highlight your dedication to public service for the hiring manager and agency leadership (or designee(s)). While your responses are not required and will not be scored, we encourage you to thoughtfully address each question. Please provide a response of 200 words or less to each question. You will be asked to certify that you are using your own words and did not use a consultant or artificial intelligence (AI) such as a large language model (LLM) like ChatGPT or Copilot. PLEASE NOTE: If your materials are not received by the closing date, your application will be evaluated solely on the information available and you may not receive full consideration or may not be considered eligible. Also, if you do not provide a valid email address, you may not be notified of the outcome of your application. To begin your online application, click "Apply Online" to create a USAJOBS account and follow the prompts or log in to your existing account. Your application packet must include a completed assessment questionnaire, a resume, and any applicable and or required supporting documentation. Please see the "Required Documents" section below for additional information. All application materials, including transcripts, must be in English. We encourage you to apply online. Email Addresses: Throughout the assessment process, the email address associated with your USAJOBS.gov profile is used for all official notifications concerning your application. It is your responsibility to proactively search for communications in email (including spam or junk folders), and on USAJOBS.gov, to ensure assessment deadlines, scheduling instructions, or document submissions are not missed. Please check the email address on your USAJOBS.gov profile to be sure it is current (e.g., does not have an outdated personal email or dhs.gov address). Outdated email addresses must be removed and replaced with a new email address prior to submitting your application. Update your email address prior to submitting your application. Once your application is submitted and the announcement has closed, that is the email address that will be used for all future communications including instructions and invitations to complete assessments. Applications and supporting documentation will not be accepted by mail or email. If you need further assistance, contact the Human Resources Operations Center address listed on this announcement at least one day prior to the closing date for further instructions. It is your responsibility to verify that any information entered or uploaded is received and is accurate. Human Resources will not modify or change any part of your application. Determining your eligibility and qualifications is dependent on the supporting documentation and information provided, which may impact your referral for further consideration. If a document is not legible, you will not be able to view it in your application. One or more positions may be filled using this vacancy announcement. Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.
Application Deadline: 2026-05-04