The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit seeking nearly $1 million from a migrant accused of failing to leave the United States after a final immigration ruling, a move that immigration experts say represents one of the most aggressive uses yet of fines.

The lawsuit, filed last week in U.S. District Court in Richmond, seeks $941,114 plus interest from Marta Alicia Ramirez Veliz. Federal officials allege she remained in the country for more than three years after the Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed her case in 2022.

According to court filings, the government calculated the amount by charging Ramirez Veliz $998 per day for 943 days between the appeals board’s decision and Immigration and Customs Enforcement sending her a bill last April. Lawyers tracking the cases say the figure appears to be the highest sought so far under the revived policy.

The lawsuit describes Ramirez Veliz as “an individual and noncitizen residing in Chesterfield County, Virginia,” but provides no details about her nationality or the legal arguments raised in her immigration case. Efforts to reach her for comment were unsuccessful.

Legal experts say the fines often fall on immigrants who have maintained contact with authorities rather than those attempting to evade the system.

The penalties stem from a 1996 law signed by former President Bill Clinton that authorizes civil fines for immigrants who “willfully” fail to leave the country. The provision went largely unused for decades. During President Donald Trump’s first term, ICE assessed 20 fines totaling nearly $84,000 and collected just $4,215, according to data gathered by groups challenging the policy.

The Biden administration later discontinued the practice, with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas concluding there was “no indication” the fines encouraged people to leave.

Trump reinstated the policy through an executive order signed on the first day of his second term. By August, immigration authorities had issued more than 21,500 fines totaling over $6 billion.

“The law doesn’t enforce itself; there must be consequences for breaking it,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said at the time. “President Trump and Secretary Noem are standing up for law and order and making our government more effective and efficient at enforcing the American people’s immigration laws.”

Immigrant rights advocates argue the fines are punitive and legally flawed. A class action lawsuit filed in November alleges the policy violates due process and misapplies the requirement that violations be “willful.”