WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As tents went up in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to hold migrants, attorneys at the Department of Homeland Security and Pentagon were still trying to determine whether it was legal to take the unprecedented step of flying migrants from the US southern border to the facility, according to two US officials and a person familiar with the planning.

On Tuesday, a military flight carrying migrants is expected to head to Guantanamo Bay, according to one of the officials.

The move stems from President Donald Trump’s memorandum directing the federal government to prepare the US Naval base there to house tens of thousands of migrants. While Guantanamo Bay hosts a migrant-processing center, it has largely been used for migrants interdicted at sea, not brought from the United States.

“They’d be pushing the limits of where the (Immigration and Nationality Act) applies,” said a former Homeland Security official. Immigration law applies to the United States, and it’s unclear what would happen to those moved out of the country only to be held in detention elsewhere.

The source familiar with the plan said questions like how long the migrants can legally be held there, and what their rights would be while detained, are still unanswered. It is also unclear whether the migrants will have any access to legal or social services while detained at the base.

Senior Trump officials have continued to tout the plan, casting it as a facility designed for criminals.

“It’s the perfect place to provide for migrants who are traveling out of our country … but also hardened criminals,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at the US southern border Monday.

Pentagon assets have already been sent to the base to build tents near the migrant operations center to house migrants. The first tents started going up last week, sources said.

US Marines flew down over the weekend to help with construction and the Army is heading there soon to provide support services like military police, a quartermaster feeding team and a medical company. At its maximum capacity, the center can hold less than 200 people, underscoring how big of a lift this will be. Sources familiar with the planning say the massive undertaking is expected to take 30 days.

Discussions have also ramped up between private contractors and the government to build several tent facilities to hold 30,000 people, according to a source familiar with the planning. The facilities are expected to hold single adults. They are expected to be transported to Guantanamo Bay on military flights before they’re repatriated to their countries of origin.

Federal immigration authorities have used tent facilities to hold migrants along the US southern border before, but they are used for temporary periods and must comply with certain standards.

Former Homeland Security officials have expressed concern over swiftly setting up similar facilities at Guantanamo Bay without a clear sense of how long people will be held and who.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told NBC’s “Meet the Press” over the weekend that it’s “not the plan” to hold migrants there indefinitely.

“The plan is to have a process that we follow that’s laid out in law and, make sure that we’re dealing with these individuals appropriately according to what the state and what the national … law directs. So, we will work with Congress to make sure that we’re addressing our legal immigration laws and using Guantanamo Bay appropriately,” she said.

Under the Biden administration, Homeland Security officials assessed the possibility of using the center to temporarily hold migrants in the event of mass maritime migration. The process to expand capacity was expected to take around 30 days, depending on what support elements could be pulled in and how quickly.

Trump’s top immigration advisers previously told CNN that management of a Guantanamo Bay detention facility for migrants would be overseen by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.

“We’re just going to expand upon existing migrant centers,” border czar Tom Homan said, adding the facility would be overseen by “our migrant center run out of Miami.”

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