Refugee Applicants and Admissions to the 

United States: 2004 

Nancy F. Rytina September 2005 

Each year, thousands of persons outside their country

of origin who fear or face persecution if they return apply for refugee status and come to live in the United

States. The number of refugees that may be admitted 

to the United States is limited by an annual ceiling. This 

Office of Immigration Statistics Annual Flow Report

provides information on the number of persons who 

filed applications for refugee status, were approved for 

refugee status, or were admitted to the United States 

as refugees in 20041

 by their country of origin. Country

of origin is used in this report to refer to a person’s 

country of nationality or country of previous residence. 

Data on refugee applications were obtained from U.S. 

Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) of the 

Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Data on 

refugee admissions were provided by the Bureau of 

Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) of the U.S. 

Department of State. 

In 2004, a total of 75,536 applications were filed for 

refugee status, 49,638 applications were approved, 

and 52,835 persons were admitted as refugees to the 

United States. The leading countries of origin of refugees admitted were Somalia, Liberia, and Laos. 

DEFINING “REFUGEE”

A refugee is an alien outside the United States who is 

unable or unwilling to return to his or her country of 

origin because of persecution or a well-founded fear of 

persecution on account of race, religion, nationality,

membership in a particular social group, or political

opinion. This definition of refugee is set forth in 

101(a)(42) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 

as amended by the Refugee Act of 1980, and generally

conforms to the international definition of refugee found 

in the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. In addition, the INA allows the President to designate certain nationalities that may be processed for 

refugee status within their homelands. 

The distinction between refugees and immigrants became firmly established following World War II. The 

_____________________________________ 

1

In this report, years refer to fiscal years (October 1 to September 30). 

first refugee legislation in the United States was the 

Displaced Persons Act of 1948 which brought 400,000 

Eastern Europeans to the United States. Other refugee 

related legislation included the Refugee Relief Act of 

1953, the Refugee-Escapee Act of 1957, the Cuban 

Adjustment Act of 1966, and the Indochinese Refugee 

Adjustment Act of 1977. 

The Refugee Act of 1980 provided for the first time 

systematic procedures for the admission and resettlement of refugees in the United States. Under the Act, 

refugees entered the United States under a statutory

status that met the generally accepted international 

definition of refugee. The Act made the distinction between refugee and asylee status. (Refugee applicants 

are outside the United States when seeking admission 

to the United States; asylum applicants are either in the 

United States or at a U.S. port or entry). The Act also 

specified provisions for the adjustment to permanent 

resident status of refugees who had been physically

present in the United States for one year. 

Admission Ceilings 

At the beginning of each fiscal year, the President, after 

consultation with Congress, sets a worldwide refugee 

admissions ceiling. During the year, an unforeseen 

emergency may require an increase in this overall limit 

on refugee admissions or changed circumstances may 

cause a reallocation of the geographic or regional subceilings within the worldwide ceiling. For 2004, as in 

2002 and 2003, the final authorized ceiling was 70,000 

(see Table 1). The ceiling was greatest for refugees 

Table 1. 

Final Admission Ceiling for Fiscal Year 2004 

Region Ceiling

 Total authorized admissions ......................... 70,000

Africa................................................................. 30,000

East Asia........................................................... 8,500

Europe .............................................................. 13,000

Latin America/Caribbean .................................. 3,500

Near East/South Asia........................................ 3,000

Unallocated reserve.......................................... 12,000

Source: Department of State, “Proposed Refugee Admissions for

FY2005 – Report to Congress.” See: www.state.gov/documents/

organization/36228.pdf 

Office of

Immigration Statistics

Management Directorate
Table 2. 

Leading Country of Origin of Persons Filing Applications for Refugee Status: Fiscal Years 2002 to 2004 

2004 2003 2002

Country of origin Number Percent Country of origin Number Percent Country of origin Number Percent

 Total ................................... 75,536 100.0 Total ................................... 42,705 100.0 Total ................................. 89,726 100.0

Somalia .................................. 17,187 22.8 Ukraine................................... 7,654 17.9 Somalia ................................ 24,458 27.3

Laos ....................................... 14,035 18.6 Cuba....................................... 4,963 11.6 Ethiopia ................................ 14,585 16.3

Cuba 9,661 12.8 Somalia .................................. 3,739 8.8 Liberia................................... 13,823 15.4

Liberia .................................... 6,873 9.1 Ethiopia .................................. 2,937 6.9 Cuba..................................... 6,419 7.2

Ukraine................................... 5,478 7.3 Russia .................................... 2,895 6.8 Bosnia and Herzegovina ...... 5,036 5.6

Sudan..................................... 4,291 5.7 Moldova.................................. 2,606 6.1 Ukraine................................. 3,959 4.4

Russia .................................... 4,198 5.6 Sierra Leone........................... 2,237 5.2 Sierra Leone......................... 3,878 4.3

Iran ......................................... 1,727 2.3 Vietnam ................................. 2,032 4.8 Sudan................................... 3,680 4.1

Moldova.................................. 1,712 2.3 Bosnia and Herzegovina ........ 1,819 4.3 Iran ....................................... 2,727 3.0

Ethiopia .................................. 1,575 2.1 Iran ......................................... 1,784 4.2 Vietnam ............................... 2,361 2.6

All other countries .................. 8,799 11.6 All other countries .................. 10,039 23.5 All other countries ................ 8,800 9.8

Source: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security

from African countries (30,000) followed 

by European countries (13,000) and East 

Asian countries (8,500)

Qualifications for Refugee Status 

During 2004, refugees were interviewed 

and approved for admission to the United 

States by officers stationed overseas and 

by asylum officers temporarily assigned 

overseas. To qualify for admission to the 

United States as a refugee, each 

applicant must meet all of the following

criteria: be a refugee as set forth in 

section 101(a)(42) of the INA; be of 

special humanitarian concern to the 

United States; be admissible under the 

INA; and not be firmly resettled in any 

foreign country. Spouses and minor 

children of qualifying refugees may derive

status and also enter the United States as 

refugees, either accompanying or 

following to join the principal refugee. 

DATA 

The data presented in this report consist 

of counts of persons by refugee-applicant 

status and country of origin. Data on refugee applications filed and approved come

from Form G-319, Report of Applicants 

for Refugee Status Under Section 207, of 

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Department of Homeland 

Security (DHS). Form G-319 is a monthly 

compilation of casework from the overseas offices of USCIS. Data on refugee 

admissions come from the Bureau of 

Population, Refugees, and Migration 

(PRM) of the U.S. Department of State. 

PRM obtains the data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a 

nongovernmental organization that arranges transportation for refugees to the 

United States. 

The data shown in this report represent 

stages in an application process that may

take several years or more to complete. 

As a consequence, applications filed in

one year may not represent the same 

persons whose applications were approved during that year. Similarly, refugee 

admissions during a given year may be 

linked to applications filed and approved 

in previous years. 

Detailed data on the characteristics of 

refugees at the time they are initially admitted to the United States are collected 

by the Office of Refugee Resettlement of 

the Department of Health and Human 

Services, which is responsible for the 

disbursement of funds for refugee benefits. Demographic data on refugees who 

adjust status to lawful permanent residence are collected by USCIS and included in OIS reports and publications on 

legal permanent residents.

HIGHLIGHTS 

Applications Filed 

The number of applications filed for refugee status increased to 75,536 in 2004 

from 42,705 in 2003 (see Table 2). However, the annual average number of refugee applications filed since 2000 was 

81,000 compared to an average of 

132,000 during the 1990s and 107,000 

during the 1980s. 

Figure 1.

Refugee Admissions to the 

United States: Fiscal Year

1982 to 2004

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

198219841986198819901992199419961998200020022004

Number of Admissions 

(in thousands)

Note: Refugee admissions as defined by in the

Refugee Act of 1980. 

The leading countries of origin of refugee 

applicants in 2004 were Somalia, Laos 

and Cuba. The majority (54 percent) of 

refugee applicants were from these three 

countries. Other leading countries of origin included Liberia, Ukraine, Sudan, 

Russia, Iran, Moldova, and Ethiopia. 

These ten countries represented 89 percent of all applicants for refugee status 

in 2004. 

Applications Approved

There were 49,638 applications for refugee status approved in 2004 (see Table 

3). This number is much higher than the 

number of applications approved in 2003

(25,329) and 2002 (18,652), but much 

lower than the number approved in 2001

 

2 DHS Office of Immigration Statistics
DHS Office of Immigration Statistics 3 

Table 3. 

Leading Country of Origin of Persons Approved for Refugee Status: Fiscal Years 2002 to 2004 

2004 2003 2002

Country of origin Number Percent Country of origin Number Percent Country of origin Number Percent

 Total ................................... 49,638 100.0 Total ................................... 25,329 100.0 Total ................................. 18,652 100.0

Laos ....................................... 14,035 28.3 Ukraine................................... 4,612 18.2 Bosnia and Herzegovina ...... 3,874 20.8

Somalia .................................. 6,616 13.3 Russia .................................... 1,894 7.5 Cuba..................................... 2,534 13.6

Cuba 5,671 11.4 Vietnam ................................. 1,772 7.0 Iran ....................................... 2,000 10.7

Liberia .................................... 4,918 9.9 Iran ......................................... 1,755 6.9 Afghanistan .......................... 1,635 8.8

Ukraine................................... 3,317 6.7 Sudan..................................... 1,609 6.4 Ukraine................................. 1,618 8.7

Sudan..................................... 3,249 6.5 Cuba....................................... 1,599 6.3 Sudan................................... 1,054 5.7

Russia .................................... 1,973 4.0 Moldova.................................. 1,575 6.2 Liberia................................... 982 5.3

Iran ......................................... 1,561 3.1 Sierra Leone........................... 1,430 5.6 Vietnam ............................... 774 4.1

Burma..................................... 1,398 2.8 Somalia .................................. 1,331 5.3 Russia .................................. 731 3.9

Moldova.................................. 1,176 2.4 Ethiopia .................................. 1,311 5.2 Iraq ....................................... 592 3.2

All other countries .................. 5,724 11.5 All other countries .................. 6,441 25.4 All other countries ................ 2,858 15.3

Source: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security

(66,198). Refugee application processing 

during 2004 was affected by continued 

safety concerns at some overseas locations and enhanced security procedures 

for applicants instituted after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the 

United States. 

The leading countries of origin of persons 

approved for refugee status in 2004 included Laos, Somalia, and Cuba. These 

three countries represented 53 percent of 

all refugee approvals. The top ten countries accounted for 88 percent of all approved applications. 

Refugee Admissions

There were 52,835 refugees admitted to 

the United States in 2004 (see Table 4). 

This is roughly double the number admitted during 2002 (26,839) and 2003 

(28,306) but less than the number admitted during preceding years (see Figure 1). 

In 2004, 50 percent of refugees admitted 

to the United States were from Somalia, 

Liberia, or Laos. Other leading countries 

of origin in 2004 included Sudan, Ukraine, 

Cuba, Ethiopia, Iran, Moldova, and Russia. These ten countries represented 83

percent of all refugee admissions in 2004. 

Table 4. 

Refugee Admitted to the United States by Country of Origin: Fiscal Years 

2002 to 2004 

(Ranked by 2004 Admissions)

2004 2003 2002

Region/Country Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

 Total.............................................. 52,835 100.0 28,306 100.0 26,839 100.0

Somalia........................................... 13,331 25.2 1,993 7.0 238 0.9

Liberia ............................................. 7,140 13.5 2,957 10.4 559 2.1

Laos ................................................ 6,005 11.4 13 -- 18 0.1

Sudan ............................................. 3,500 6.6 2,140 7.6 895 3.3

Ukraine............................................ 3,482 6.6 5,065 17.9 5,219 19.5

Cuba ............................................... 2,959 5.6 303 1.1 1,925 7.2

Ethiopia........................................... 2,710 5.1 1,704 6.0 329 1.2

Iran.................................................. 1,787 3.4 2,471 8.7 1,525 5.7

Moldova .......................................... 1,711 3.2 616 2.2 1,021 3.8

Russia............................................. 1,446 2.7 1,394 4.9 2,100 7.8

Sierra Leone ................................... 1,084 2.1 1,378 4.9 176 0.7

Burma ............................................. 1,056 2.0 203 0.7 128 0.5

Vietnam........................................... 974 1.8 1,356 4.8 3,081 11.5

Afghanistan..................................... 959 1.8 1,453 5.1 1,677 6.3

Belarus............................................ 659 1.2 702 2.5 680 2.5

Colombia......................................... 577 1.1 149 0.5 8 --

Congo, Democratic Republic .......... 569 1.1 251 0.9 105 0.4

Uzbekistan ...................................... 426 0.8 166 0.6 394 1.5

Azerbaijan....................................... 407 0.8 406 1.4 115 0.4

Kazakhstan ..................................... 312 0.6 118 0.4 222 0.8

Other............................................... 1,741 3.3 3,468 12.3 6,414 23.9

-- Figure rounds to 0.0. Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration 

   

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Visit the Office of Immigration Statistics 

Web page at uscis.gov/graphics/shared 

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