PROPOSED REFUGEE ADMISSIONS

FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022

REPORT TO THE CONGRESS

SUBMITTED ON BEHALF OF

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

TO THE 

COMMITTEES ON THE JUDICIARY

UNITED STATES SENATE

AND

UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

IN FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF

SECTIONS 207(d)(1) AND (e)

OF THE

IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
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Table of Contents

Contents

INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................- 4 -

FOREWORD...........................................................................................................................................- 5 -

OVERVIEW OF U.S. REFUGEE POLICY .......................................................................................- 10 -

PROPOSED CEILINGS FOR FY 2022..............................................................................................- 11 -

ADMISSIONS PROCEDURES...........................................................................................................- 12 -

DHS/USCIS REFUGEE ADJUDICATIONS .....................................................................................- 19 -

PROCESSING ACTIVITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE .............................................- 21 -

OFFICE OF REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT (ORR)........................................................................- 24 -

REGIONAL REFUGEE ADMISSIONS ............................................................................................- 28 -

Africa..................................................................................................................................................- 28 -

East Asia ............................................................................................................................................- 29 -

Europe and Central Asia..................................................................................................................- 30 -

Latin America and The Caribbean .................................................................................................- 30 -

Near East and South Asia.................................................................................................................- 31 -

INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ACT/NORTH KOREAN HUMAN RIGHTS ACT REPORTING- 32 -

FY 2020 Countries of Particular Concern......................................................................................- 32 -

North Korean Human Rights Act....................................................................................................- 33 -

DOMESTIC REFUGEE ADMISSIONS ............................................................................................- 34 -

ADMISSIONS TABLES AND STATISTICS ....................................................................................- 35 -
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LIST OF TABLES

 Page

I. Projected Refugee Admissions for FY 2021 and Proposed 

Refugee Admissions for FY 2022 by Region 11

II. Proposed FY 2022 Regional Ceilings by Priority 27

III. USRAP Projected Arrivals by Region, FY2021 35

IV. USRAP Admissions, FY 2020 35

V. USRAP Admissions by Country of Origin, FY 2020 36

VI. Median Age and Gender of Refugee Arrivals, FY 2020 38

VII. Select Age Categories of Refugee Arrivals, FY 2020 39

VIII. Refugee Arrivals by State of Initial Resettlement, FY 2020 40

IX. Estimated Funding of Refugee Processing, Movement, and 

Resettlement FY 2021 and FY 2022 42

X. UNHCR Resettlement Statistics by Resettlement Country, 

CY 2020 43
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INTRODUCTION

This Proposed Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2022 Report to the Congress is submitted in 

compliance with Sections 207(d)(1) and (e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). This 

report provides the following information required by those sections:

1) A description of the nature of the refugee situation;

2) A description of the number and allocation of the refugees to be admitted, and an 

analysis of conditions within the countries from which they came;

3) A description of the plans for their movement and resettlement and the estimated cost of 

their movement and resettlement;

4) An analysis of the anticipated social, economic, and demographic impact of their 

admission to the United States; 

5) A description of the extent to which other countries will admit and assist in the 

resettlement of such refugees;

6) An analysis of the impact of the participation of the United States in the resettlement of 

such refugees on the foreign policy interests of the United States; and

7) Such additional information as may be appropriate or requested by such members.

This report also contains information as required by Section 602(d) of the International Religious 

Freedom Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-292, October 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2787) (IRFA), as 

amended, about religious persecution of refugee populations eligible for consideration for 

admission to the United States.

This report also meets the reporting requirements of Section 305(b) of the North Korean Human 

Rights Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-333, October 18, 2004, 118 Stat. 1287), as amended, by 

providing information about specific measures taken to facilitate access to the United States 

refugee admissions program for individuals who have fled “countries of particular concern” for 

violations of religious freedoms, identified pursuant to Section 402(b) of the IRFA.
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FOREWORD

A robust refugee admissions program is critical to U.S. foreign policy interests and national 

security objectives, and it is a touchstone of the Administration’s commitment to rebuilding a 

safe, orderly, humane and lawful migration system. Refugee resettlement is among the most

visible manifestations of a values-based foreign policy, demonstrating American humanitarian 

leadership. It is also a concrete reflection of the United States’ commitment to human rights, 

including freedom of religion or belief and freedom of expression, and is necessary to mobilize 

other countries to meet their own humanitarian obligations. It is a showing of solidarity with 

refugees and the countries hosting them, providing a beacon of hope for persecuted people 

around the world. The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) fosters multilateral 

cooperation among U.S. government agencies, U.S. states and localities, private resettlement 

partners, foreign governments, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the 

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Under the authority of the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962, as amended, the 

United States contributes to the programs of UNHCR, the International Committee of the Red 

Cross (ICRC), IOM, and other international organizations that provide protection and assistance 

to refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), victims of conflict, stateless persons, and other 

vulnerable migrants. These contributions are used to address the legal and physical protection 

needs of refugees and to furnish basic assistance such as water, sanitation, food, health care, 

shelter, education, and other services. The United States monitors these programs to ensure the 

most effective use of resources, maximizing humanitarian impact for the beneficiaries.

Refugee resettlement complements those efforts, providing critical protection for the most 

vulnerable refugees. The United States recognizes that resettlement in third countries is a vital 

tool for providing a durable solution for refugees, particularly those who cannot return safely to 

their country of origin or integrate into local communities in a country of first asylum. For some 

refugees, resettlement is the safest, and perhaps the only, alternative. Alongside robust 

humanitarian aid and diplomacy, resettlement helps promote stability in regions experiencing 

crisis, demonstrates U.S. responsibility-sharing with affected countries, and enables the U.S. to 

negotiate additional humanitarian outcomes such as access to legal work, education, and legal 

status for the vast majority of refugees who remain in countries of first asylum and will never be 

resettled. For example, by resettling stateless refugees through the USRAP, the U.S. government 

encourages other countries to do more to help stateless people and prevent new stateless 

populations, including by implementing universal birth registration. Stateless refugees who 

arrive in the United States for resettlement not only find a durable solution to their displacement 

but are also placed on a path that will afford the opportunity to naturalize and resolve their 

stateless status.

The United States has long been a global leader in refugee resettlement. The USRAP reflects our 

tradition as a nation that has long welcomed immigrants and refugees. It is an important, 

enduring, and ongoing expression of our commitment to international humanitarian principles

and provides a powerful counter-narrative to anti-American sentiment abroad.

The number of forcibly displaced people worldwide is unprecedented and continues to climb, 

including over 20 million refugees under UNHCR’s mandate. New political violence, 
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intensifying humanitarian crises, climate change-induced displacement, and increased threats to 

refugees in countries of asylum all support a need to increase refugee admissions to the United 

States and among our global resettlement partners. The President’s Emergency Determination of 

May 3, 2021, raised the ceiling from a historic low of 15,000 to 62,500, both reflecting the 

urgent need to respond to the growing and urgent humanitarian crises, and restoring the United 

States’ global humanitarian leadership.

Notably, resettlement also provides refuge to foreign nationals who risk their lives to assist U.S. 

military and diplomatic efforts overseas. Providing humanitarian protection to those who 

contributed to U.S. missions abroad advances national security, helps ensure the safety of U.S. 

government personnel in conflict zones, and signals to current and future allies that the U.S. is a 

credible and reliable partner. Importantly, it is a tool by which the United States can recognize 

and repay the life-saving service of those who helped advance, at great risk to themselves, U.S. 

interests in key regions of the world. 

Despite urgently undertaken initiatives to rebuild and expand the USRAP and to address the 

many challenges posed by COVID-19, as we near the end of FY 2021, we anticipate that arrivals 

in FY 2021 will fall far short of the 62,500 target established by President Biden on May 3, 

2021. The Biden Administration will redouble efforts in FY 2022 to restore the USRAP and put 

it on stable ground to meet the longer-term global objectives described above 

The USRAP in FY 2022: Plans to Rebuild, Amidst Operational Challenges

The Biden Administration has prioritized rebuilding the USRAP through strengthening its global 

infrastructure to welcome significantly greater numbers of refugees and through modernizing the 

program to be responsive to evolving demands and opportunities. This section highlights the 

priority objectives and innovations planned for FY 2022.

In FY 2022, the Administration plans to increase the USRAP target with a particular focus on 

several key populations and programs: expanded resettlement of Central Americans; enhanced 

access to the USRAP for Afghans at risk due to their affiliation with the United States; increased 

resettlement of LGBTQI+ refugees; priority access for at-risk Uyghurs, Hong Kong refugees, 

and Burmese dissidents; and resettlement of Burmese Rohingya. 

Executive Order 14013 (on Rebuilding and Enhancing Programs to Resettle Refugees and 

Planning for the Impact of Climate Change on Migration) has instructed a series of bold reforms 

and initiatives for the USRAP.. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) aims to 

increase staffing significantly, upscale in-person circuit rides and refugee video interviews, 

identify current bottlenecks, and implement process improvements to its adjudicatory processes. 

The USRAP will leverage technological solutions to strengthen data-driven decision-making and 

streamline refugee processing with the deployment of START and Global, the Department of 

State and USCIS’s respective new refugee applicant case management systems, while enhancing 

the security of all of our refugee processing systems. 
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Executive Order 14013 and the Presidential Memorandum on the rights of LGBTQI+ persons 

both recognize the precarious and often dangerous circumstances faced by this group and call for 

expanding resettlement solutions for LGBTQI+ persons and ensuring the USRAP operates in an 

efficient and dignified manner for all. While LGBTQI+ individuals are already prioritized for 

referrals to the USRAP, PRM is working with partners to expand access for eligible LGBTQI+ 

refugees, including through greater use of NGO referrals and a private sponsorship pilot 

program.

Recognizing that successful refugee resettlement would not be possible without active 

engagement of communities into which refugees arrive, the Administration is also increasing

support for community sponsorship. First, it will incentivize greater use of existing cosponsorship models among domestic resettlement agencies. Second, a major initiative in FY 

2022 will be the implementation of a private sponsorship pilot program, whereby community 

members will take on the primary responsibility of welcoming and providing initial support to 

newly arrived refugees, helping facilitate their successful integration. 

Another priority for FY 2022 is to rebuild and expand capacity of domestic partners to welcome 

and support refugee arrivals. The Administration will pursue a variety of funding initiatives and 

program strategies to create a more resilient and flexible reception and placement program. The 

Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) and the 

Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) will work 

with domestic resettlement agencies, State Refugee Coordinators (SRCs), and other stakeholders

to ensure that the national network of resettlement providers is well positioned to welcome

expected refugee arrivals in FY 2022.

The Administration also intends to maintain and improve USRAP security and integrity while 

transforming the USRAP into a more efficient and just program. Any enhancements to security 

screening for refugee applicants will continue to meet the rigorous standards already in place to 

ensure the safety and security of the American people. The Department of Homeland Security 

(DHS) and the Department of State are actively working with security vetting partners to ensure 

vetting procedures are effective, fair, and complemented by appropriate fraud detection measures 

for all USRAP applicants. They will work to provide USRAP overseas and domestic partners 

with sufficient guidance and oversight while also ensuring safeguards are in place to prevent 

potential staff fraud and malfeasance. This includes increasing anti-fraud efforts and staffing

across agencies, for all Priority and in-country programs.

Ensuring resettlement remains an available durable solution for those most in need cannot be 

achieved by the United States alone. Through robust and sustained humanitarian diplomacy, the 

United States will exert international leadership by pressing other countries to increase their own 

commitments and leveraging resettlement to achieve additional humanitarian outcomes in 

refugee contexts around the globe. It will continue to encourage UNHCR to similarly prioritize 

and advance this form of protection, elevating this function within its own organization and 

mobilizing resettlement countries to step up their respective efforts. This fiscal year, the United 

States will act as the Chair of the Annual Tripartite Consultations on Resettlement (ATCR), cochair the Priority Situations Core Group, and participate in other multilateral fora that advance
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common resettlement objectives in FY 2022, with the aim of expanding resettlement 

opportunities among existing and new resettlement countries globally. 

COVID-19 Pandemic Impacts: As a result of the global pandemic, many aspects of USRAP 

processing ground to a halt or were severely impacted in FY 2020-2021, which dramatically 

slowed the rate of refugee resettlement. Although the situation has improved in most locations, 

progress is uneven and not linear. USRAP travel was suspended from March through July 2020,

and, as a result, only 493 refugees traveled on emergency cases from March 19 until July 29 of 

that year. 

The screening and interview process has also been severely impacted. Throughout the initial 

phases of the COVID-19 pandemic, many PRM-funded partners were unable to perform inperson functions required to conduct pre-screening interviews. USCIS halted circuit rides in 

March 2020, and only a handful of in-person circuit rides have been conducted since then. In 

certain regions, USCIS has been able to implement video teleconference (V-TEL) interviews. 

However, V-TEL interviews, even on a significantly larger scale, will not be a viable 

replacement to in-person USCIS circuit rides, which are more efficient and will be vital to 

achieving 125,000 refugee arrivals in FY 2022. 

There are approximately 90,000 refugees in the USRAP pipeline who have completed initial prescreening but who are still awaiting a USCIS interview. As of September 11, 2021, there have 

been 5,810 USCIS interviews in the fourth quarter of FY 2021, with increases anticipated in 

subsequent quarters, pandemic conditions permitting. It is unclear whether the COVID-19 Delta 

variant will impact the ability to conduct the large number of refugee applicant interviews 

necessary to achieve significantly higher admission numbers.

Additionally, vaccination availability in many of the countries where USRAP processing occurs 

remains low, with many refugees and local national Resettlement Support Center (RSC) staff 

remaining unvaccinated. The lack of progress on controlling the pandemic globally continues to 

affect the ability of RSC and U.S. government staff to process large numbers of refugees safely 

and will undoubtedly impact activity into FY 2022. 

Beyond COVID-19, the USRAP continues to be impacted by the restrictive allocations, lower 

overall arrivals, and decreased USRAP partner staffing and resources during the last 

Administration. Significant additional investments in staffing and infrastructure in early FY 

2022 will be necessary to build the foundation for higher numbers in subsequent years. This 

includes continuing to fill vacant positions in the Department of State’s PRM Admissions Office

and within the USCIS refugee corps; providing further significant resettlement funding to and 

engagement with UNHCR to support dramatically expanded referrals to USRAP; increasing 

funding for IOM and PRM’s RSC, including for additional staff; continuing to rebuild PRM and 

ORR’s domestic capacity to welcome and integrate refugees; completing deployment of PRM’s 

START and USCIS’ Global case management systems; successfully incorporating refugee 

vetting into the National Vetting Center (NVC); increasing staffing and automation for refugee 

security vetting; and significantly increasing USCIS’ interviewing capacity and adjudication 

efficiency. 
- 9 -

The U.S. government will make every effort to reach the target established by the President 

following consultations with Congress. In the immediate term, in the interest of careful 

stewardship of taxpayer resources and taking into account current USRAP capacity and ongoing 

operational constraints related to COVID-19, PRM intends to fund USRAP domestic and 

overseas implementing partners at an initial operating level to support 65,000 arrivals at the 

beginning of FY 2022. Those funding levels will be re-evaluated and increased as appropriate as 

the year progresses and as it becomes clearer how much progress can be made against the target.

The FY 2022 President’s Budget Request included additional resources for USCIS for refugee 

processing, as USCIS will need to more than double the number of staff supporting refugee 

admissions in order to build the pipeline of interviewed and approved applicants. USCIS is 

making every effort to increase staffing as early as possible in FY 2022, funding permitting. 

Given the time between interview and admission to the United States for approved applicants, a 

significant number of refugee applicants approved as a result of increased staffing for USCIS 

may not arrive until FY 2023. Early and sustained infusion of additional resources is necessary 

to rebuild a healthy pipeline to sustain higher admission numbers not only for FY 2022, but for 

years to come.
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OVERVIEW OF U.S. REFUGEE POLICY

Who is a Refugee?

Under Section 101(a)(42) of the INA, a refugee is a person who, generally, has experienced past 

persecution or has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, 

membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. Individuals who meet the statutory 

definition may be considered for either refugee status under Section 207 of the INA if they are 

outside the United States, or asylum status under Section 208 of the INA, if they are already in 

the United States or present themselves at a U.S. port of entry. Both refugee and asylum status 

are forms of humanitarian protection offered by the United States.

Additionally, under INA §101(a)(42)(B), the President may specify circumstances under which 

individuals who are within their countries of nationality or last habitual residence may be 

considered a refugee for purposes of admission to the United States. Persons for whom 

resettlement is requested by a U.S. ambassador in any location in the world may also be 

considered, with the understanding that those within their countries of nationality or last habitual 

residence will only be referred to the USRAP following Department of State consultation with 

USCIS at DHS. Likewise, the U.S. will consider accepting a limited number of referrals from 

qualified NGOs of highly vulnerable individuals within their countries of nationality or last 

habitual residence following Department of State consultation with USCIS.

Individuals outside the United States seeking admission as a refugee under Section 207 of the 

INA are processed through the USRAP, which is managed by the Department of State in 

cooperation with DHS and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Those 

admitted as refugees are eligible for U.S. government-funded resettlement assistance, which is 

discussed below in the Office of Refugee Resettlement section. Individuals in the United States 

seeking asylum status under Section 208 of the INA are processed by DHS and, in certain cases, 

by the Department of Justice (DOJ)’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR, also 

known as the immigration court system). Asylum applicants are not eligible for resettlement 

assistance through USRAP but are eligible for certain other forms of assistance and services run 

by state, private, and non-profit agencies, and they may apply for discretionary employment 

authorization under certain conditions.

Since the passage of the Refugee Act in 1980, which incorporated this definition of refugee into 

the INA, the United States has welcomed more than 3.8 million refugees and asylees. 
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PROPOSED CEILINGS FOR FY 2022

 

TABLE I

Projected Refugee Admissions for FY 2021 and Proposed Refugee Admissions for FY 2022

by Region

REGION

REVISED

FY 2021

CEILING

FY 2021

PROJECTED

ARRIVALS

PROPOSED FY

2022

ALLOCATION

Africa 22,000 8,000 40,000 

East Asia 6,000 1,000 15,000 

Europe and Central Asia 4,000 1,000 10,000 

Latin America/Caribbean 5,000 500 15,000 

Near East/South Asia 13,000 2,000 35,000 

Regional Subtotal 50,000 12,500 115,000 

Unallocated Reserve 12,500 0 10,000 

Total 62,500 12,500 125,000 

The proposed FY 2022 allocations are based on refugee resettlement needs and humanitarian 

policy priorities. Areas of particular focus in FY 2022 include higher expected arrivals of 

Afghan refugees with the recent P-2 designation and providing more safe and legal pathways, 

including resettlement, for vulnerable individuals in Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador. 

More detail about each region is below in the Regional and Refugee Admissions section. 

Furthermore, the Secretary of State, upon notification to the Judiciary Committees of the 

Congress, would be authorized to transfer unused admissions allocated to a particular category to 

one or more other categories, if there is a need for greater admissions for the category or 

categories to which the admissions are being transferred.

Unallocated Reserve

This proposal includes 10,000 unallocated admissions numbers to be used if needed for 

additional refugee admissions from any region. The unallocated numbers would only be used 

following notification to Congress.
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ADMISSIONS PROCEDURES

Eligibility Criteria

PRM is responsible for coordinating and managing the USRAP. A critical part of this 

responsibility is determining which individuals or groups from among the millions of refugees 

worldwide will have access to the USRAP. PRM coordinates within the Department of State, as 

well as with USCIS and other agencies, in carrying out this responsibility.

Section 207(a)(3) of the INA states that the USRAP shall allocate admissions among refugees 

“of special humanitarian concern to the United States in accordance with a determination made 

by the President after appropriate consultation.” Which individuals are “of special humanitarian 

concern” to the United States for the purpose of refugee resettlement consideration is determined

through the USRAP priority system. There will be four priorities in FY 2022.

Priority 1: Individual cases referred by designated entities to the program by virtue of their 

circumstances and apparent need for resettlement.

Priority 2: Groups of special concern designated by the Department of State as having access to 

the program by virtue of their circumstances and apparent need for resettlement.

Priority 3: Individual cases from designated nationalities granted access for purposes of 

reunification with family members already in the United States.

Priority 4: Individual cases from all nationalities who have been sponsored by individuals in the 

United States, and who receive some post-arrival benefits or service from those sponsors.

(Note: Refugees resettled in the United States may also seek the admission of spouses and 

unmarried children under 21 who are still abroad by filing a “following-to-join” petition, which 

does not require a separate refugee adjudication for these family members. This option is 

described in more detail in the discussion of following-to-join cases below.)

Access to the USRAP under one of the above-listed processing priorities does not necessarily 

mean an applicant meets the statutory definition of a “refugee” or is admissible to the United 

States under the INA. Applicants who are eligible for access to the USRAP within the 

established priorities are presented to USCIS officers for interview and adjudication. The 

ultimate determination as to whether an applicant can be admitted as a refugee is made by 

USCIS in accordance with criteria set forth in the INA and various security protocols.

Although the access categories to the USRAP are referred to as “processing priorities,” it is 

important to note that entering the program under a certain priority does not establish precedence 

in the order in which cases will be processed or the likelihood of success of the claim. Once 

cases are established as eligible for access under one of the processing priorities, they all undergo 

the same processing steps. 

Priority 1 (P-1) – Individual Referrals
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Priority 1 (P-1) allows the USRAP to consider refugee claims from persons of any or no 

nationality, usually with compelling protection needs, for whom resettlement appears to be the 

appropriate durable solution. P-1 cases are identified and referred to the program by UNHCR, a 

U.S. embassy, or a designated NGO.

UNHCR, which has the international mandate to provide protection to refugees worldwide, has 

historically referred the vast majority of cases to the United States under this priority. Embassies 

may also make a P-1 referral, and are encouraged to do so. A U.S. ambassador may make a P-1 

referral for persons still in their country of origin if the ambassador determines that such persons

are in need of exceptional treatment and PRM and USCIS concur. 

PRM has designated some NGOs that assist refugees as eligible to provide P-1 referrals directly 

to PRM. As directed in Executive Order 14013, PRM is working to expand NGO referrals to the 

USRAP, in order to provide greater access to refugees in need of resettlement.

Priority 2 (P-2) – Group Referrals

Priority 2 (P-2) includes specific groups whose members are in need of resettlement as identified 

by the Department of State in consultation with USCIS, NGOs, UNHCR, and other experts. P-2 

designations reflect that a group is of special humanitarian concern to the United States and that 

individual members of the group will likely qualify for admission as refugees under U.S. law.

There are two distinct models of P-2 access to the program: predefined group access and direct 

access. Under both models, P-2 designations are made based on shared characteristics that 

define the group. In general, these characteristics are the reason that members of the group have 

been persecuted or have a well-founded fear of persecution in the future.

A predefined group designation is usually based on a UNHCR recommendation that lays out 

eligibility criteria for individuals in a specific location. In recent years, predefined groups have 

included certain Burmese in Thailand, certain Bhutanese in Nepal, and certain Congolese in

Tanzania and Rwanda. In August 2021, PRM announced a P-2 designation for certain Afghan 

nationals and their eligible family members.

Once PRM, in consultation with USCIS, establishes the access eligibility criteria for the group, 

the referring entity (usually UNHCR) provides the biographical data of eligible refugee 

applicants for processing. This type of group enables efficient processing because it identifies 

groups of people with very similar persecution claims, can prevent labor-intensive individual 

referrals, and prevents delays to applicants.

In special circumstances, the direct access model for P-2 group referrals enables individuals to 

apply for access to the program based on meeting designated criteria. The direct access model 

has operated largely for in-country programs, historically including refugees from Bosnia and 

Herzegovina, Cuba, Eurasia and the Baltics, Iraq, and Vietnam. To establish a direct access P-2 

group, PRM, in consultation with USCIS, defines the specific criteria and procedures for access. 

Applicants may then apply according to that process. Applicants who clearly do not meet the 

access requirements do not proceed to USCIS interviews.
- 14 -

Once an individual gains access to processing via a P-2 designation, all other processing steps 

are the same as for those referred by P-1, including individual pre-screening and USCIS 

interviews, and all security and medical checks.

IN-COUNTRY PROCESSING PROGRAMS

P-1 UNHCR referrals inside their country of origin:

Persons in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras: In El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras 

UNHCR refers to the USRAP cases of vulnerable individuals identified by a consortium of 

NGOs. Cases with the most extreme protection needs may be transferred to Costa Rica for 

refugee processing under a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of 

Costa Rica, UNHCR, and IOM; all other cases are eligible for in-country processing for 

resettlement to the United States.

Direct Access P-2s inside their country of origin:

Lautenberg Program for Certain Members of Religious Minority Groups in Eurasia and 

the Baltics: This group includes Jews, Evangelical Christians, and Ukrainian Catholic and 

Orthodox religious adherents identified in the Lautenberg Amendment, Section 599D of Title V, 

P.L. 101-167, as amended (the Lautenberg Amendment), with close family in the United States. 

With annual statutory renewal of the Lautenberg Amendment, these individuals are considered 

under a reduced evidentiary standard for establishing a well-founded fear of persecution.

Certain Iraqis Associated with the United States: Under various P-2 designations, including 

those set forth in Section 1243(a) of the Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2007, Title XII, Div. A, P. 

L. 110-181, as amended, employees of the U.S. government, a U.S. government-funded 

contractor or grantee, U.S. media or U.S. NGOs working in Iraq, and certain family members of 

such employees, as well as beneficiaries of approved I-130 petitions for immigrant visas, are 

eligible for refugee processing in Iraq. This program is temporarily suspended.

Persons in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras: The P-2 designated Central American 

Minors (CAM) program allows certain parents lawfully present in the United States to request 

access to the USRAP for their unmarried child(ren) under the age of 21. In some instances, other 

in-country relatives may be eligible when accompanying the qualifying child. 

An expansion of eligibility for those who can request access to the CAM was announced on June 

15, 2021. Implementation began in September 2021, at which point eligibility is extended to 

include legal guardians (in addition to parents) who are in the United States pursuant to any of 

the following qualifying categories: lawful permanent residence; temporary protected status; 

parole; deferred action; deferred enforced departure; or withholding of removal. The expansion 

of eligibility will also include certain U.S.-based parents or legal guardians who have a pending 

asylum application or a pending U visa petition filed before May 15, 2021. 

Certain Persons in Cuba: Included in this Cuba P-2 program are human rights activists, 

members of persecuted religious minorities, former political prisoners, forced-labor conscripts, 

and persons deprived of their professional credentials or subjected to other disproportionately 
- 15 -

harsh or discriminatory treatment resulting from their perceived or actual political or religious 

beliefs. As of September 2021, this program remains suspended.

GROUPS OF HUMANITARIAN CONCERN OUTSIDE THEIR COUNTRY OF ORIGIN

Pre-defined Group Access P-2s:

Ethnic Minorities and Others from Burma in Camps in Thailand: Under this P-2 

designation, individuals who fled Burma, were registered in one of nine refugee camps along the 

Thai/Burma border, were identified by UNHCR as in need of resettlement, and expressed 

interest in third-country resettlement prior to January 2014 (depending on the location), are 

eligible for processing.

Ethnic Minorities from Burma in Malaysia: Under this P-2 designation, members of ethnic 

minorities from Burma who were recognized by UNHCR as refugees in Malaysia, registered by 

August 17, 2010, and identified as being in need of resettlement, are eligible for resettlement 

consideration.

Congolese in Rwanda: Certain Congolese refugees in Rwanda who arrived between 1994 and 

2005, were verifiably registered by UNHCR in 2011 or 2012, and identified as in need of 

resettlement, are eligible for processing.

Congolese in Tanzania: Certain Congolese refugees registered by UNHCR, whose residence in 

Nyarugusu camp was confirmed in a 2013-2014 UNHCR verification exercise, are eligible for 

processing.

Afghan nationals: Under this new P-2 designation, individuals who fall into the below three 

categories are eligible for processing: 

• Afghans who do not meet the minimum time-in-service for a Special Immigrant Visa but 

who work/worked as employees of contractors*, Locally Employed Staff, 

interpreters/translators for the U.S. Government, United States Forces Afghanistan, 

International Security Assistance Force, or Resolute Support; 

• Afghans who work/worked for a U.S. government-funded program or project in 

Afghanistan supported through a U.S. government grant or cooperative agreement*;

• Afghans who are/were employed in Afghanistan by a U.S.-based media organization or 

non-governmental organization.  U.S.-based media organizations may also refer Afghan 

nationals who worked for them under stringer, freelance, and comparable arrangements.

*Note: Afghans who work/worked for sub-contractors and sub-grantees do not qualify for the P2 designation, though they may qualify for P-1 referrals.

Direct Access Model P-2s:

Lautenberg Program for Certain Members of Religious Minority Groups in Iran: Iranian 

members of certain religious minorities are eligible for processing and are considered under a 

reduced evidentiary standard for establishing a well-founded fear of persecution pursuant to the 
- 16 -

annual renewal of the Lautenberg Amendment, as amended in 2004 by Section 213 of Title II, 

Division E, of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004, P.L. 108-199. 118 Stat. 3 (“the 

Specter Amendment”).

Certain Iraqis Associated with the United States: Under various P-2 designations, including 

those set forth in Section 1243(a) of the Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2007, Title XII, Div. A, P. 

L. 110-181, as amended, employees of the U.S. government, a U.S. government-funded 

contractor or grantee, U.S. media, or U.S. NGOs working in Iraq, and certain family members of 

such employees, as well as beneficiaries of approved I-130 petitions for immigrant visas, are 

eligible for refugee processing in several countries in the region, including Jordan, Egypt, and 

Lebanon, in addition to the in-country program in Iraq. This program is temporarily suspended.

Syrian Beneficiaries of Approved I-130 petitions: Under this P-2 designation, Syrian 

beneficiaries of approved I-130 immigrant visa petitions for whom immigrant visas have not yet 

been issued, are eligible for refugee processing.

OTHER POPULATIONS FOR PRIORITY CONSIDERATION

In addition, the following populations have been determined priorities in FY 2022:

• Turkic Muslim refugees who are nationals or last habitual residents of China; 

• Refugees who are activists, journalists, and political dissidents and who are permanent 

residents of the Hong Kong Special Administration Region, or who last habitually 

resided therein;

• Rohingya Muslim refugees who are nationals or last habitual residents of Burma;

• Individuals persecuted on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or sex 

characteristics; and

• Iraqi and Syrian nationals who are members of a religious or ethnic minority.

PRM will undertake efforts in FY 2022 to enhance and expand access opportunities for the

individuals in the above populations to USRAP in FY 2022, including through expanding NGO 

referrals and encouraging greater use of Embassy referrals.

Priority 3 (P-3) – Family Reunification 

P-3 provides USRAP access to individuals of special humanitarian concern who have immediate 

family members in the United States who were admitted in certain humanitarian immigrant 

statuses. The immediate family members in the United States can initiate an application for their 

relatives even if they subsequently gained lawful permanent resident status or naturalized as U.S. 

citizens. Parents, spouses, and unmarried children under the age of 21 of the U.S.-based relative 

can benefit from P-3 referrals.

To qualify for access under the P-3 program, an applicant must generally be outside of their 

country of origin, be registered or have legal status in the country of asylum, have had an 

Affidavit of Relationship (AOR) filed on their behalf by an eligible family member in the United 

States during a period in which the nationality was included on the eligibility list, and have been 

cleared for onward processing by USCIS.
- 17 -

PRM designates which U.S.-based relatives can initiate P-3 processing based on their admission 

status. For FY 2022, AOR filers can include those admitted as asylees, refugees, or Afghan and 

Iraqi special immigrants (admitted under Section 1059 of the National Defense Authorization 

Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (P.L. 109-163; 8 U.S.C. 1101 note), Section 1244 of the Refugee Crisis 

in Iraq Act of 2007 (8 U.S.C. 1157 note), and Section 602 of the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 

2009 (8 U.S.C. 1101 note)). This includes persons who are lawful permanent residents of the 

United States or U.S. citizens who initially were admitted to the United States in the designated 

status. The U.S.-based filer must be at least 18 years of age at the time the AOR is filed. The 

filer must file the AOR within five years of the date they were admitted as an asylee, refugee, or 

special immigrant and the USRAP may reject any AOR for a relationship that does not comport 

with U.S. law, such as under-age or plural marriages. 

The USRAP recognizes that many refugee families face legal and practical obstacles to legal 

marriage or marriage registration. The United States will allow a qualifying individual to file for 

P-3 access for a partner of any gender if the filer can provide evidence of a relationship with the 

partner for at least one year overseas prior to the submission of the AOR and considers that 

person to be his/her spouse or life partner, and that the relationship is ongoing, together with 

evidence that legal marriage could not be obtained due to social and/or legal prohibitions.

In addition to the qualifying family members of a U.S.-based individual identified above, the 

qualifying family member’s spouse and unmarried children under 21 may derive refugee status 

from the qualifying family member.

On a case-by-case basis, an individual may be added to a qualifying family member’s P-3 case if 

that individual:

• Lived in the same household as the qualifying family member in the country of nationality 

or, if stateless, last habitual residence; AND

• Was part of the same economic unit as the qualifying family member in the country of 

nationality or, if stateless, last habitual residence; AND

• Demonstrates exceptional and compelling humanitarian circumstances that justify 

inclusion on the qualifying family member’s case.

These individuals are not “spouses” or “children”, under INA Section 207(c)(2)(A) and thus 

cannot derive their refugee status from the Principal Applicant. They must, therefore, 

independently establish that they qualify as a refugee.

Because of the importance of reuniting immediate refugee families who have been separated 

while fleeing from persecution, this report proposes to continue to make P-3 processing available 

to individuals of all nationalities, including stateless individuals.
- 18 -

Priority 4 (P-4) – Privately sponsored refugees 

The Department of State, in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services, is 

developing a private sponsorship pilot program that it anticipates launching in early 2022. A 

Priority 4 (P-4) category will be linked to the pilot program and cover refugees supported by 

private sponsors who accept primary responsibility for funding and providing core resettlement 

services. The private sponsorship pilot program will include a matching component and an 

identification component. 

Under the matching component, private sponsors will be matched with refugees who already 

have access to USRAP through another priority category. Upon approval for resettlement, these 

refugees would be re-assigned to the P-4 category to distinguish them from the typical P-1, P-2, 

and P-3 categories. Under the identification component, private sponsors who meet certain 

criteria will be permitted to identify and refer refugees to the P-4 category and apply to sponsor 

their resettlement.

Following-to-Join Family Reunification Petitions

Under 8 U.S.C. Section 207(c)(2), a principal refugee admitted to the United States may request 

following-to-join benefits for his or her spouse and/or unmarried children under the age of 21 

who were not previously granted refugee status. Once in the United States, and within two years 

of admission, the refugee may file a Form I-730 Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition1 with USCIS 

for each eligible family member. If the Form I-730 petition for a beneficiary residing abroad is 

approved or transferred by USCIS’ Service Center Operations Directorate, preliminarily or 

finally, (signifying adequate proof of eligibility based on a file review), the Department of 

State’s National Visa Center forwards the petition to the USCIS office, embassy, or consulate 

nearest to the location of the beneficiary for adjudication or travel eligibility determination. 

Individuals who gain access to the USRAP through the Form I-730 petition are interviewed by 

USCIS or consular officers to verify the relationships claimed in the petition, as well as to 

examine any applicable bars to status and admissibility to the United States. Beneficiaries are 

not required to establish past persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution, as they derive 

their status from the refugee relative in the United States who filed the petition. Beneficiaries of 

I-730 petitions may be processed within their country of origin or in other locations. 

Certain relatives in the United States may file an I-730 Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition and 

seek P-3 access for their qualifying family members (if eligible) simultaneously. In some cases, 

the I-730 petition will be the only option as the family members are still in their country of 

origin. It is also important to note that unlike the P-3 process, the I-730 or following-to-join 

process does not allow the relative in the United States to petition for parents. 

1 This petition is used to file for the relatives of both refugees and asylees, also known as Visa 93 and Visa 92 cases 

respectively. The USRAP handles only Visa 93 cases, which are counted within the annual refugee admissions 

ceiling. Visa 92 cases are not considered to be refugee admissions cases and are not counted in the number of 

refugees admitted annually.
- 19 -

DHS/USCIS REFUGEE ADJUDICATIONS 

Section 207(c) of the INA grants the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security 

authority to admit, at his or her discretion, any refugee who is not firmly resettled in a third 

country, who is determined to be of special humanitarian concern, and who is admissible to the 

United States. The authority to determine eligibility for refugee status has been delegated to 

USCIS. USCIS also devotes substantial resources to security vetting, anti-fraud, and training 

related to refugee processing, and it has strong partnerships with the law enforcement, national 

security, and intelligence communities to maintain and promote the integrity of the USRAP.

The Eligibility Determination

In order to be approved for classification as a refugee, an applicant must meet the refugee 

definition contained in Section 101(a)(42) of the INA. That section provides that a refugee is a 

person who is outside his or her country of nationality or, if stateless, last habitual residence and 

is unable or unwilling to return to that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of 

persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group2, or 

political opinion. As mentioned above, the President may specify special circumstances under 

which a person can meet the refugee definition when he or she is still within his or her country of 

origin or, if stateless, last habitual residence. The refugee definition excludes a person who has 

ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in persecution on account of race, religion, 

nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. Further, an applicant 

who has been “firmly resettled” in a third country may not be admitted as a refugee under INA 

Section 207. Applicants are also subject to various statutory grounds of inadmissibility, 

including criminal, security, and public health grounds, some of which may be waived or from 

which applicants may be exempted. Finally, an applicant must establish that a positive exercise 

of discretion is merited.

A USCIS officer conducts a non-adversarial interview of each refugee applicant designed to 

elicit information about the applicant’s claim for refugee status, any grounds of ineligibility, and 

factors related to the exercise of discretion. The officer asks questions about the applicant’s 

experiences in the country of origin, including problems and fears about returning (or 

remaining), as well as questions concerning the applicant’s activities, background, and criminal 

history. The officer also considers evidence about conditions in the country of origin and 

assesses the applicant’s credibility and claim. For derivative applicants, the officer also asks 

questions to inform the decision of eligibility based on family relationships.

Background Security Checks 

Refugees are among the most heavily screened groups to enter the United States, and the safety 

and security of the American people remains the first and foremost consideration in refugee 

admissions processing. Refugee applicants of all nationalities are required to undergo 

2 Under E.O. 14010, DHS and DOJ are engaging in a joint rulemaking to address the meaning of ‘particular social 

group’ as that term is used in the aforementioned section of the INA, and as derived from the 1951 Refugee 

Convention.
- 20 -

background security checks. Security checks include biographic name checks for all refugee 

applicants and biometric (fingerprint) checks for refugee applicants within certain age limits. 

PRM, through its overseas RSCs, initiates required biographic name checks, while USCIS is 

responsible for collecting biometric data for screening. Biographic and biometric information is 

vetted against a broad array of law enforcement, intelligence community, and other relevant 

databases to help confirm identity, to check for any criminal or other derogatory information 

(including watchlist information), and to identify information that could inform lines of 

questioning during the interview. Refugee applicants must have all required security checks 

resolved prior to admission to the United States as a refugee.

In addition, PRM and USCIS work continually with interagency partners to identify 

opportunities to enhance security screening for refugee applicants. This includes increasing the 

efficacy, efficiency, and fairness of security screening without sacrificing the rigorous security 

measures that ensure the safety and security of the American people. 
- 21 -

PROCESSING ACTIVITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Overseas Processing Services 

In most processing locations, PRM funds an NGO or an international organization (IO) to 

manage a Resettlement Support Center (RSC) that assists in the processing of refugee applicants 

for admission to the United States. RSC staff pre-screen applicants for eligibility for one of the 

applicable processing priorities and to prepare cases for USCIS adjudication. The RSCs assist 

applicants in completing documentary requirements and schedule USCIS refugee eligibility 

interviews. If an applicant is conditionally approved for resettlement by USCIS, RSC staff guide 

the refugee through post-adjudication steps, including obtaining medical screening exams and 

attending cultural orientation programs. The RSC obtains sponsorship assurances and, once all 

required steps are completed, including all necessary security clearances, refers the case to IOM 

for transportation to the United States.

In FY 2021, NGOs (Church World Service, HIAS, the International Catholic Migration 

Commission, and the International Rescue Committee) worked under cooperative agreements 

with PRM to operate RSCs at locations in Austria (covering Austria and Israel), Kenya (covering 

sub-Saharan Africa), Turkey (covering Lebanon), and Thailand (covering Asia). The 

Department of State funded IOM to support refugee processing activities based in El Salvador, 

Jordan, and Ukraine which cover Latin America, the Middle East, and Central Asia, respectively.

Cultural Orientation

PRM strives to ensure that refugees who are accepted for admission to the United States are 

prepared for the profound life changes they will experience as part of the resettlement process. 

This is done through pre-departure and post-arrival cultural orientation which aims to provide 

refugees with the vital knowledge, skills, and attitudes they need to adapt to their new lives and 

be well positioned to achieve self-sufficiency.

Pre-departure cultural orientation is offered by RSCs and usually takes place one week to three 

months before departure. Modified as needed for specific refugee populations and in-country 

circumstances, pre-departure cultural orientation generally lasts from one to five days and is 

provided by trained educators using appropriate teaching methodologies based on established 

objectives and indicators. It begins with in-depth instructions on international travel and safety, 

emphasizes the need for early employment and self-sufficiency, introduces American health and 

education systems, describes typical housing situations, and further explores refugees’ rights and 

responsibilities in relation to their resettlement process, their acquisition of lawful permanent 

resident status and pathway to citizenship, U.S. laws, and more. Every refugee family is offered 

a copy of Welcome to the United States, a resettlement guidebook, developed with contributions 

from refugee resettlement workers, resettled refugees, and government officials. A companion 

video is also available and frequently used with other videos to enhance cultural orientation for 

populations with low literacy. 

Post-arrival cultural orientation is provided, beginning right after arrival in the United States, by 

staff at local resettlement agencies. As part of the resettlement cultural orientation continuum, 

post-arrival cultural orientation reviews and builds upon pre-departure cultural orientation by 
- 22 -

grounding lessons in the local context. For example, state health care coverage is explained as 

refugees learn how to access and pay for health services; refugees are introduced to the local 

public school system and learn about customary student behavior and expectations of parental 

involvement; and refugees learn about the amenities and services available in their new 

communities. In many locations, local partners, such as representatives from health care 

facilities, banks, and local police stations, are invited to attend cultural orientation to break down 

barriers and build trust. Volunteers in many communities also help with cultural orientation by 

accompanying refugees to neighborhood grocery stores or the library, or by showing them how 

public transportation works in their cities. A comprehensive curriculum is provided to support 

resettlement staff with adaptable lesson plans and activities and offers guidance on effective 

instructional approaches, working with groups of different sizes, incorporating English into 

orientation, and conducting assessments. 

PRM also supports a robust technical assistance program, the Cultural Orientation Resource 

Exchange (https://coresourceexchange.org/), which works to ensure that refugees receive

consistent messages in pre-departure and post-arrival cultural orientation and trains resettlement 

staff to deliver effective cultural orientation. In addition, the Cultural Orientation Resource 

Exchange helps providers respond to unforeseen events that impact resettlement and require 

rapid adaptation and critical communication to resettling refugees, such as during the COVID-19 

pandemic. The Cultural Orientation Resource Exchange also develops and manages refugeefacing resources and digital channels to augment instructor-led classes, support refugee selflearning, and build the digital skills that will help them achieve self-sufficiency.

Transportation 

PRM funds the international transportation of refugees resettled in the United States through a 

program administered by IOM. The cost of transportation is provided to refugees in the form of 

a loan. Refugees are responsible for repaying these loans over time, beginning six months after 

their arrival, although it is possible to request a deferral based on inability to begin paying at that 

time.

Reception and Placement (R&P)

In FY 2021, PRM funded cooperative agreements with nine non-profit resettlement agencies to 

provide initial resettlement services to refugees arriving in the United States pursuant to the 

authority in 8 U.S.C. 1522(b). The R&P agencies are responsible for providing initial reception 

and core services (including housing, furnishings, clothing and food, as well as assistance with 

access to medical, employment, educational, and social services) to arriving refugees. These 

services are provided according to standards of care within a framework of outcomes and 

indicators developed jointly by the NGO community, state refugee coordinators, and U.S. 

government agencies. The nine organizations maintain a nationwide network of 208 affiliated 

offices in 148 locations to provide services. Two of the organizations also maintain a network of 

29 affiliated offices through which unaccompanied refugee minors are placed into foster care, a 

program administered and funded by HHS/ORR. 
- 23 -

Using R&P funds from PRM, supplemented by funds and in-kind contributions from private and 

other sources, the participating agencies provide the following services, consistent with the terms 

of the R&P cooperative agreement:

• Sponsorship;

• Pre-arrival resettlement planning, including placement;

• Reception on arrival;

• Basic needs support (including housing, furnishings, food, and clothing) for at least 30 

days;

• Cultural orientation; 

• Assistance with access to health, employment, education, and other services, as needed; 

and

• Development and implementation of an initial service plan for each refugee.
- 24 -

OFFICE OF REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT (ORR) 

Through the Refugee Act, Congress directed HHS/ORR to provide refugees with resettlement 

assistance that includes employment training, English language training, cash assistance (in a 

manner that promotes early self-sufficiency), and job placement – including providing women 

with equal opportunities to employment as men. ORR’s mission is to help refugees transition 

into the United States by providing benefits and assistance to achieve integration as soon as 

possible. To this end, ORR funds and administers various programs, some of which are 

highlighted below.

Refugee Cash and Medical Assistance

Refugees not eligible for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or those pending 

receipt of Supplemental Security Income are eligible to receive Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA)

upon arrival. Refugees not eligible for Medicaid are eligible to receive Refugee Medical 

Assistance (RMA) upon arrival. While refugees are statutorily authorized to receive RCA and 

RMA for up to 36 months from arrival, funding limitations have historically limited RCA and 

RMA to eight months of benefits. ORR is exploring options to better support refugees during 

this timeframe given rising housing costs and the desire to better match employment with skill 

level. RCA and RMA are administered by states and Replacement Designees, who are private 

entities designated by ORR to administer the refugee program in a state that has withdrawn from 

administration of the program. In state-administered programs that operate a publicly 

administered RCA program, RCA benefits are based on cash benefit levels established by state 

TANF programs. In states that operate their RCA program through a Public-Private Program 

model, the RCA benefit is based on the higher of the RCA rates outlined in the ORR regulations 

or the state TANF rates.

Refugee Support Services

ORR also provides states and Replacement Designees with Refugee Support Services (RSS)

funds. ORR distributes this funding by formula based on the arrived and served ORR-eligible 

populations for up to the previous three years. Funding is time-limited, and refugees can only 

access RSS services up to five years after arrival. These services include employment services, 

on-the-job training, English language instruction, vocational training, case management, 

translation/interpreter services, social adjustment services, health-related services, home 

management, childcare and transportation.

Additionally, to assist specific groups of refugees or to target specific needs, ORR administers 

specialized RSS “set-aside” programs that include Services to Older Refugees, Refugee School 

Impact, Youth Mentoring, and Refugee Health Promotion.

ORR Matching Grant Program

The ORR Matching Grant program (MG) is provided through the nine national resettlement 

agencies that provide R&P services and their resettlement affiliates in 42 states. The objective of 

MG is to guide newly arrived refugee households toward economic self-sufficiency through 

employment within six months of program eligibility (which usually begins on the date of arrival 
- 25 -

in the United States). In MG, self-sufficiency is defined as total household income from 

employment that (1) would exceed the established state income threshold for TANF eligibility, 

and (2) enables a family unit to support itself without relying on cash assistance. For each MG 

participant, ORR awards a per capita grant to participating national resettlement agencies, which 

then allocate funds to their networks of local affiliates for direct services and administrative 

expenses. Agencies provide a 50% match to every federal dollar awarded.

Through the ORR MG Program, local service providers ensure core support services for a 

minimum of 180 days which include housing, transportation, food, and a cash allowance. 

Clients also receive intensive case management and employment services throughout the 180-

day service period. Refugees who are unable to attain self-sufficiency by day 180 may access 

RCA for the remainder of the eligibility period, which is generally eight months. 

ORR Refugee Health

ORR services focus on providing technical assistance on domestic medical screening guidelines 

and refugee medical assistance, assessment and follow-up for contagious or communicable 

diseases, mental health awareness and linkages, suicide prevention, emergency preparedness and 

other health and mental health initiatives. Specifically, ORR funds RMA, refugee medical 

screening, and refugee health promotion to support refugee populations. The Survivors of 

Torture program is also funded by ORR to provide culturally competent and strengths-based 

services, as well as client-centered treatment plans to restore dignity, enhance resilience, and 

rebuild the lives of all survivors of torture, regardless of immigration status. ORR also conducts 

mental-health first aid trainings to refugee-serving program staff and refugee community leaders 

to help them identify and assist refugees in emotional distress. 

ORR Unaccompanied Refugee Minor Program

ORR provides funding to 15 states, including the District of Columbia, and Replacement 

Designees to administer 25 Unaccompanied Refugee Minor programs. The Unaccompanied 

Refugee Minors program separate and distinct from ORR’s Unaccompanied Children Program.

States and Replacement Designees contract with local licensed foster care agencies that provide 

specialized placements and services to unaccompanied refugee minors. Unaccompanied refugee 

minors live in various placements including traditional and therapeutic foster homes, group 

homes, semi-independent and independent living, and residential treatment centers. The youth 

receive various services including English language training, educational and vocational training, 

cultural preservation, social integration, family tracing, permanency planning, independent 

living, medical care, and mental health care. ORR regulations require states to provide services 

to unaccompanied refugee minors in parity with the state’s Title IV-B and Title IV-E foster care 

plans. 

 

Wilson-Fish TANF Coordination Program 

The Wilson-Fish TANF Coordination Program supports the development and implementation of 

new or innovative programs throughout a state to facilitate access by refugee families with 

children under the age of 18, or generally those refugees who may be eligible for TANF, to 

relevant, customized, and culturally and linguistically appropriate integrated services and 
- 26 -

resources that harness refugees’ specific strengths and address the challenges they face postresettlement. Administered through a discretionary award to both state and non-profit grantees, 

services provided under this program are available for up to five years after a refugee’s arrival to 

the U.S. 

ORR Technical Assistance

ORR’s Refugee Technical Assistance Program provides technical assistance to resettlement 

stakeholders to enhance services, strengthen organizational capacity, and increase community 

engagement. Switchboard, a project of the International Rescue Committee, is funded by ORR 

and makes its resources, trainings, and expertise available to all ORR grantees and sub-grantees. 

ORR also funds a technical assistance provider to support grantees in its Survivors of Torture

program. The Center for Victims of Torture’s National Capacity Building project supports ORR 

Survivor of Torture grantees by building capacity to provide holistic, sustainable, and integrated 

services and evaluating and strengthening the quality and sustainability of these programs and 

organizations.
- 27 -

TABLE II

Proposed FY 2022 Regional Ceilings by Priority

AFRICA

Priority 1 Individual Referrals 19,000

Priority 2 Groups 20,000

Priority 3 Family Reunification Refugees 1,000

Total Proposed: 40,000

EAST ASIA

Priority 1 Individual Referrals 9,500

Priority 2 Groups 5,000 

Priority 3 Family Reunification Refugees 500

Total Proposed: 15,000

EUROPE / CENTRAL ASIA

Priority 1 Individual Referrals 50

Priority 2 Groups 9,950

Priority 3 Family Reunification Refugees 0

Total Proposed: 10,000

LATIN AMERICA / CARIBBEAN

Priority 1 Individual Referrals 10,000

Priority 2 Groups 5,000

Priority 3 Family Reunification Refugees 0

Total Proposed: 15,000

NEAR EAST / SOUTH ASIA

Priority 1 Individual Referrals 14,500

Priority 2 Groups 20,000

Priority 3 Family Reunification Refugees 500

Total Proposed: 35,000

Grand Total Proposed: 115,000

UNALLOCATED RESERVE 10,000

TOTAL PROPOSED CEILING: 125,000
- 28 -

REGIONAL REFUGEE ADMISSIONS3

Africa 

The proposed FY 2022 ceiling for African refugees from these regions is 40,000 individuals. 

There are currently more than 6.8 million refugees across the African continent, constituting 

roughly 26 percent of the global refugee population. Refugee numbers in Africa increased in 

2021 due to new or intensified conflicts across the continent, extreme weather, and economic 

fallout of COVID-19. According to UNHCR, Uganda, Sudan, and Ethiopia alone hosted over 

two-thirds of the refugees in the region. The East and Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes region 

hosted 4.5 million refugees at the end of 2020. In June 2021, there were more than 2.3 million 

South Sudanese refugees in neighboring countries.

Over the past year, the outbreak and expansion of conflict in northern Ethiopia has sparked a 

widespread humanitarian crisis and conflict-induced famine. More than 5.2 million people are in 

need of humanitarian assistance. The Tigray conflict in Ethiopia has led to the displacement of 

more than 50,000 Ethiopians into neighboring Sudan. The deepening crisis in the Sahel region 

of Africa, including violence in Burkina Faso and Mali, and continued violence by armed groups 

in northern Nigeria caused the largest increase in the number of new refugees on the continent in 

2020.

The estimated resettlement needs in the Africa region in 2022 continue to be the highest globally. 

While voluntary repatriation and local integration may be possible in small numbers, 

resettlement remains an important durable solution for refugees across the continent. UNHCR 

estimates that over 600,000 refugees in sub-Saharan Africa have resettlement needs. To address 

these needs, the United States plans to significantly increase resettlement activities in Africa in 

the coming years. This growth will come from the continued processing of Congolese, Eritrean,

and Sudanese refugees, as well as through building resettlement programs for populations that 

the USRAP has so far only processed in small numbers, including refugees from South Sudan 

and the Central African Republic.

Due to the continued conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, UNHCR intends to refer 

increased numbers of Congolese from the Great Lakes region and Southern Africa to the 

USRAP. There also continues to be a sizable number of Congolese refugees in the USRAP 

pipeline. Congolese refugees will continue to constitute one of the largest arrival populations.

In response to the crisis in northern Ethiopia, the United States will also increase the Ethiopian 

refugee admissions target for FY 2022 in order to provide urgent resettlement to displaced 

Eritrean and other refugees within Ethiopia and those Ethiopians who have fled as refugees to 

neighboring countries. UNHCR has indicated that there is an urgent need to increase Eritrean 

referrals in Ethiopia and Sudan. 

The United States intends to significantly increase South Sudanese resettlement in the coming 

years in conjunction with UNHCR and to lay the foundation for a sizable resettlement program 

3 Note that refugees count against a regional allocation based on nationality, not the processing location.
- 29 -

for refugees from the Central African Republic who are located throughout West Africa but 

primarily in Chad and Cameroon. Additionally, the United States expects a renewed focus on 

resettlement for Sudanese refugees in sub-Saharan Africa, including in Chad. 

The United States will continue to be a key partner in the resettlement of unaccompanied refugee 

minors from Africa. As one of the few countries with the domestic capacity to resettle 

unaccompanied minors, the United States plans to increase the number of emergency

unaccompanied refugee minor cases processed throughout the continent. There will also be 

continued focus on unaccompanied refugee minors who have been evacuated 

from Libya by UNHCR to transit points in Niger and Rwanda, as well as minors facing 

persecution in Ethiopia and elsewhere.

East Asia 

The proposed FY 2022 ceiling for refugees from East Asia is 15,000 individuals. 

According to UNHCR, there are 9.2 million people of concern across Asia, including 4.4 million 

refugees and asylum-seekers. Several countries in East Asia host large and diverse refugee and 

asylum-seeker populations. Thailand, Bangladesh, and Malaysia continue to host large numbers 

of Burmese refugees and asylum-seekers, as well as Afghan, Iraqi, Pakistani, Somali, Sri 

Lankan, Sudanese, and Syrian refugees. Thousands of refugees are in the capital cities of 

Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta. One million one hundred thousand stateless Rohingya 

refugees have fled Myanmar since the beginning of ethnic cleansing in Rakhine state in 2017.

Malaysia and Bangladesh host 90 percent of all Rohingya refugees.

The two primary countries for UNHCR referrals from East Asia are Malaysia and Thailand, with 

a smaller number of referrals from other countries in the region. The Rohingya will remain a 

population for priority consideration, including from Bangladesh. More than 9,000 Rohingya 

have resettled to the United States over the past decade, primarily from Malaysia. In Thailand 

and Malaysia, PRM continues to work through the residual caseload of the P-2 camp-based 

Burmese refugees and the P-2 urban Burmese, respectively. UNHCR’s focus for new referrals 

will be from these diverse urban refugee populations. 

For members of ethnic and religious minorities and others from Burma in camps in Thailand, 

there is a P-2 designation for individuals who fled Burma, were registered in one of nine refugee 

camps along the Thai/Burma border, were identified by UNHCR as in need of resettlement, and 

expressed interest in third-country resettlement prior to January 2014 (depending on the 

location), these individuals are eligible for resettlement consideration. In addition, for member 

of ethnic and religious minorities from Burma who are in Malaysia, the P-2 designation for

members of ethnic minorities from Burma who were recognized by UNHCR as refugees in 

Malaysia, registered by August 17, 2010, and identified as being in need of resettlement, are 

eligible for resettlement consideration.
- 30 -

Europe and Central Asia

The proposed FY 2022 ceiling for refugees from Europe and Central Asia is 10,000 individuals. 

This regional allocation counts refugees of European and Central Asian nationalities only. 

Europe hosts large refugee populations, as well as significant numbers of asylum-seekers, 

internally displaced persons, and stateless persons. According to UNHCR, there were over 6.8

million refugees in Europe at the end of 2020. This represented an increase of three percent in 

the total number of refugees hosted in Europe. Many refugees in Europe fled conflicts outside 

the region, particularly conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq, but the estimate also includes

persons claiming persecution within Eurasia, including hundreds of thousands of refugees and 

IDPs in the Balkans and Caucasus. Turkey continued to host the largest refugee population in 

the world, accounting for nearly 15 percent of all people displaced across borders. According to 

UNHCR, there are nearly four million refugees in Turkey in 2021, the vast majority of whom are 

Syrians (3.6 million), with smaller numbers of Afghans, Iraqis, Iranians, and other nationalities. 

Refugees resettled from Turkey are counted in the Near East and South Asia regional allocation, 

which is discussed in more detail below.

P-2 referrals include individuals who will be processed under Lautenberg guidelines in the states 

of the former Soviet Union. Nearly all of the refugee caseload within Eurasia falls under the 

direct access P-2 Lautenberg Program, whereby citizens of the Former Soviet Union (FSU) are 

eligible for the USRAP if they belong to certain religious categories and can show a qualifying 

relationship with individuals legally residing in the United States. 

The resettlement of Iranian refugees suffering religious persecution has long been accomplished 

through a unique partnership with the Government of Austria (GoA) as a component of the P-2 

Lautenberg Program. While this program has been suspended since 2017, the United States 

hopes to resume processing in FY 2022. These refugees would be counted against the Near 

East/South Asia regional allocation.

Latin America and The Caribbean 

The proposed FY 2022 allocation for refugees from Latin America and the Caribbean is 15,000 

individuals. 

According to UNHCR, countries in Latin America and the Caribbean host close to 15.4 million 

people of concern to UNHCR, including asylum-seekers, refugees, stateless persons, and 

internally displaced persons, representing around 18 percent of the world’s forcibly displaced 

population. The political, economic, and human rights crisis in Venezuela has continued to 

deteriorate. The number of Venezuelans displaced grew by eight percent in 2020, reaching 4.6 

million by the end of 2020. UNHCR has warned that the displacement of Venezuelans may soon 

eclipse the displacement of Syrians. Dramatic increases in violence by organized criminal gangs 

in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador led to almost 900,000 people being forcibly displaced

from those three countries. Violence in Colombia among armed groups seeking to fill the power 
- 31 -

vacuum left by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) led to thousands of 

displaced Colombians fleeing to Ecuador, while Colombia itself hosted more than 1.7 million 

refugees from the crisis in Venezuela. Since nationwide protests and subsequent government 

crackdowns began in April 2018 in Nicaragua, over 100,000 Nicaraguans have fled to 

neighboring countries, with the vast majority journeying south to Costa Rica and Panama.

The majority of arrivals from Latin America in FY 2022 will originate from El Salvador, 

Guatemala, and Honduras, where displacement is driven by widespread violence and 

compounded by limited economic opportunities, poverty, poor governance, corruption, and the 

effects of a changing climate that exacerbates food insecurity and extreme weather events that 

can result in displacement. PRM is also working with UNHCR to stand up new referral 

mechanisms for displaced Venezuelans and Nicaraguans, primarily through P-1 access to the 

USRAP in FY 2022.

PRM anticipates that up to 10,000 individuals in the region will access the USRAP through two 

primary mechanisms. The first mechanism will be through a Protection Transfer Arrangement

between the Government of Costa Rica, UNHCR, and IOM, whereby P-1 referrals will be 

identified and processed for resettlement in their country of nationality or habitual residence, 

with the most urgent cases transferred to Costa Rica to undergo final processing. The second 

primary mechanism will be through the Central American Minors program, where certain U.S.-

based parents and legal guardians may petition for access to this P-2 program for their eligible 

children and other family members in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. 

Near East and South Asia

The proposed FY 2022 ceiling for refugees from the Near East and South Asia is 35,000 

individuals, including Syrians, Iraqis, Afghans, and other nationalities, primarily from the host 

countries of Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt.

The Near East and South Asia region continues to host more than 8 million refugees, primarily 

Afghans, Iranians, Iraqis, Palestinians, Sri Lankans, Tibetans, and Syrians. The conflict in Syria 

entered its eleventh year in 2021 and remains the largest displacement crisis since World War II. 

According to UNHCR, there are currently 13.5 million displaced Syrians, accounting for more

than half of Syria’s total population. Approximately 6.7 million Syrians refugees are hosted in 

over 128 countries, while 6.7 million Syrians are internally displaced. Turkey is the largest host 

of Syrian refugees, and 80% of all Syrian refugees are located in neighboring countries. More 

than 3.6 million Syrians have fled to Turkey. Refugee vulnerability across the Near East

continued to increase in 2021. For example, 89 percent of Syrian refugees in Lebanon 

live below the extreme poverty line and close to two million Syrian refugees in Turkey live in 

poverty. As the protracted conflict in Syria continues, UNHCR reports that Syrian nationals 

have the highest resettlement needs globally and estimates that more than 592,000 Syrians will 

need resettlement as part of an ongoing multi-year targeted program. 

The situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated rapidly throughout the summer of 2021. More than 

550,000 Afghans have been displaced so far this year in addition to the 2.9 million internally 

displaced at the end of 2020. Some 2.2 million Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers have fled to 
- 32 -

neighboring countries, with an estimated 5,000 Afghans are fleeing to Iran each day in August 

2021. With the Taliban taking control in Afghanistan, thousands more are attempting to leave. 

In addition to the Afghan P-2 program, for which PRM has received tens of thousands of 

referrals, an interagency effort is underway to relocate Afghan Special Immigrant Visa 

applicants to the United States.

Instability in Iraq continues to cause displacement in the region. Millions of Iraqis have been 

displaced since the emergence of ISIS in early 2014. UNHCR estimates nearly 1.2 million Iraqis 

remain internally displaced in 2021 and unable to return to their homes due to limited 

employment opportunities, lack of basic services, violence, and insecurity. UNHCR reports an 

additional 287,000 displaced Iraqi refugees were registered with UNHCR in neighboring 

countries in 2021. Involuntary returns due to IDP camp closures in Iraq between October 2020 

and January 2021 resulted in secondary displacement for many Iraqis. IDP camps in the Iraqi 

Kurdistan Region, however, remain open.

INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ACT AND NORTH KOREAN HUMAN RIGHTS ACT 

REPORTING

FY 2020 Countries of Particular Concern

The USRAP continues to be available through P-1 referrals to persons of any or no nationality 

who have been persecuted or fear persecution due to religion. In addition, P-3 provides USRAP 

access to individuals of special humanitarian concern who have immediate family members in 

the United States who were admitted in certain humanitarian immigrant statuses. At present, the 

following countries have been designated by the Secretary of State as Countries of Particular 

Concern under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. 

Africa: Eritrea and Nigeria

In Eritrea and Nigeria, the governments are engaging in or tolerating systematic, ongoing, and 

egregious violations of religious freedom.

East Asia: DPRK, China, and Burma

The DPRK severely restricts religious freedom, including organized religious activity, except for 

that which is supervised tightly by officially recognized groups linked to the government. While 

the constitutions of China and Burma provide for freedom of religion, in practice these 

governments restrict or repress religious activities. Furthermore, the Burmese military coup that 

took place in February 2021 has abrogated human rights enshrined in the constitution and laws, 

with resultant repression of religious freedom and related rights.

Europe and Central Asia: Tajikistan and Turkmenistan

Under Tajikistani law, persons under the age of 18 cannot participate in public religious 

activities, and a ruling by Tajikistan’s highest Islamic religious body bans Hanafi Sunni women 

from attending mosques. The government of Turkmenistan has imprisoned an unknown number 

of Muslims for their religious beliefs, as well as conscientious objectors, primarily Jehovah’s 

Witnesses.
- 33 -

Near East and South Asia: Iran, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia

In Iran, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia, blasphemy and defamation of religion laws are used to 

restrict religious liberty, constrain the rights of religious minorities, and limit freedom of 

expression, and those accused face prison sentences and threats of violence.

North Korean Human Rights Act

As reflected in the North Korean Human Rights Act, the United States remains deeply concerned 

about the human rights situation of North Koreans both inside the Democratic People’s Republic 

of Korea (DPRK) and in various countries in the region. The United States began resettling 

interested, eligible North Korean refugees and their family members in 2006 and remains 

committed to continuing this program.
- 34 -

DOMESTIC REFUGEE ADMISSIONS 

In FY 2020, the USRAP admitted 11,814 refugees from 55 countries. More than half were 

originally from either the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burma. (See Table IV.)

The demographic characteristics of refugee arrivals from the 20 largest source countries 

(representing close to 100 percent of total arrivals) in FY 2020 illustrate the variation among 

refugee groups. The median age of all FY 2020 arrivals was 21 years, ranging from a median 

age of 18 years for arrivals from Eritrea to 37 years of age for arrivals from Armenia. In FY 

2020, 48.2 percent of all arriving refugees were female and 51.9 percent of all arriving refugees 

were male. Males predominated among refugees from Iran (76.6 percent), Pakistan (65.1 

percent), and Sudan (61.4 percent). (See Table IV.)

Of the total arrivals in FY 2020, roughly 11.3 percent were under the age of five, 29.3 percent 

were of school age, 57 percent were of working age, and 2.3 percent were of retirement age. 

(See Table V.) Considerable variation among refugee groups can be seen among specific age 

categories. Refugees under the age of five ranged from a high of 17.2 percent among arrivals 

from Ethiopia to a low of 2.9 percent of those from Iran. The number of school-age children 

(from five to 17 years of age) varied from a high of over 39 percent of arrivals from Syria to a 

low of 5.8 percent of those from Iran. The number of working-age refugees (16 to 64 years of 

age) varied from a high of 91.2 percent of those from Iran to a low of 50.3 percent of individuals 

from Eritrea. Retirement-age refugees (65 years or older) ranged from a high of 6.3 percent of 

arrivals from Armenia to a low of less than one percent of those from Eritrea.

During FY 2020, 62 percent of all arriving refugees resettled in 12 states. The majority were 

placed in California (10 percent), followed by Washington (9.4 percent), Texas (7.6 percent), 

New York (5.2 percent), Michigan (4.2 percent), and Kentucky (4 percent). The states of North 

Carolina (4 percent), Pennsylvania (3.8 percent), Arizona (3.8 percent), Ohio (3.6 percent), 

Minnesota (3.3 percent), and Georgia (3.2 percent) also were in the top twelve states where 

refugees were resettled. (See Table VI.)
- 35 -

ADMISSIONS TABLES AND STATISTICS

TABLE III

USRAP Projected Arrivals by Region, FY 2021

REGION

REVISED

FY 2021 CEILING

FY 2021

PROJECTED

ARRIVALS

Africa 22,000 8,000 

East Asia 6,000 1,000

Europe and Central Asia 4,000 1,000

Latin America/Caribbean 5,000 500

Near East/South Asia 13,000 2,000

Regional Subtotal 50,000 12,500

Unallocated Reserve 12,500 0 

Total 62,500 12,500

TABLE IV

USRAP Admissions, FY 2020

ALLOCATION

FY 2020

CEILING

FY 2020

ACTUAL 

ARRIVALS

Refugees who:

• have been persecuted or a have well-founded 

fear of persecution on account of religion; or

• who are within a category of aliens established 

under subsection (b) of Section 599D of Title 

V, P. L. 101-167, as amended (the Lautenberg 

and Specter Amendments).

5,000 4,859 

Refugees who are within a category of aliens listed in 

Section 1243(a) of the Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 

2007, Title XII, Div. A, P. L. 110-181, as amended.

4,000 161 

Refugees who are nationals or habitual residents of El 

Salvador, Guatemala, or Honduras. 1,500 703 
- 36 -

Other refugees not covered by the foregoing categories, 

including:

• Those referred to the USRAP by a U.S. 

embassy in any location.

• Those who gain access to the USRAP for 

family reunification through the Priority 3 

process or through a Form I-730 following-tojoin petition.

• Those currently located in Australia, Nauru, or 

Papua New Guinea who gain access to USRAP 

pursuant to an arrangement between the United 

States and Australia. 

7,500 6,091 

Total 18,000 11,814

TABLE V

USRAP Admissions by Country of Origin, FY 2020

Country of Origin Individual Arrivals

Percentage of Total 

Arrivals

Dem. Rep. Congo 2,868 24.28%

Burma 2,115 17.90%

Ukraine 1,927 16.31%

Afghanistan 604 5.11%

Iraq 537 4.55%

Syria 481 4.07%

Eritrea 475 4.02%

El Salvador 365 3.09%

Moldova 364 3.08%

Sudan 254 2.15%

Guatemala 247 2.09%

Colombia 215 1.82%

Russia 188 1.59%

Pakistan 169 1.43%

Somalia 149 1.26%

Iran 137 1.16%
- 37 

-

Ethiopia 116 0.98%

Honduras 91 0.77%

Central African Republic 85 0.72%

Armenia 64 0.54%

Burundi 46 0.39%

Sri Lanka (Ceylon) 42 0.36%

Republic of South Sudan 38 0.32%

Liberia 32 0.27%

Kazakhstan 28 0.24%

Ivory Coast 25 0.21%

Uganda 25 0.21%

Venezuela 20 0.17%

Senegal 14 0.12%

Rwanda 14 0.12%

Vietnam 12 0.10%

Uzbekistan7 0.06%

Cuba7 0.06%

Bhutan7 0.06%

Nepal5 0.04%

Lebanon5 0.04%

Cameroon4 0.03%

Zimbabwe3 0.03%

Palestine3 0.03%

Jamaica3 0.03%

Djibouti3 0.03%

Bangladesh3 0.03%

Korea, North2 0.02%

India2 0.02%

Guinea2 0.02%

Congo2 0.02%

Yemen1 0.01%

Tunisia1 0.01%

Sierra Leone1 0.01%

Mali1 0.01%

Malawi1 0.01%

Kenya1 0.01%

Jordan1 0.01%

Egypt1 0.01%
- 38 -

Tanzania 1 0.01%

TOTAL 11,814 100.00%

Source: Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, Refugee 

Processing Center

TABLE VI

Median Age and Gender of Refugee Arrivals, FY 2020

Rank

(# of 

Arrivals) Country of Origin

Refugees

Admitted

Median

Age

%

Females

%

Males

1 Dem. Rep. Congo 2,868 19 48.74% 51.26%

2 Burma 2,115 21 48.37% 51.63%

3 Ukraine 1,927 25 48.99% 51.01%

4 Afghanistan 604 21 51.49% 48.51%

5 Iraq 537 30 43.95% 56.05%

6 Syria 481 21 47.19% 52.81%

7 Eritrea 475 18 45.47% 54.53%

8 El Salvador 365 23 54.25% 45.75%

9 Moldova 364 28 50.55% 49.45%

10 Sudan 254 25 38.58% 61.42%

11 Guatemala 247 24 53.44% 46.56%

12 Colombia 215 22 51.16% 48.84%

13 Russia 188 31 51.06% 48.94%

14 Pakistan 169 28 34.91% 65.09%

15 Somalia 149 23 36.24% 63.76%

16 Iran 137 34 23.36% 76.64%

17 Ethiopia 116 21 54.31% 45.69%

18 Honduras 91 24 59.34% 40.66%

19

Central African 

Republic 85 22 55.29% 44.71%

20 Armenia 64 37 59.38% 40.63%

21 All Other Countries 363 26 46.56% 53.44%

TOTAL 11,814 23 48.15% 51.85%

Source: Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, Refugee 

Processing Center
- 39 -

TABLE VII

Select Age Categories of Refugee Arrivals, FY 2020

Rank

(# of 

Arrivals) Country of Origin

Under 5 

Years

School 

Age 

(5-17)

Working 

Age

(16-64)

Retiremen

t Age

(=or > 65)

1 Dem. Rep. Congo 14.50% 31.62% 52.34% 1.53%

2 Burma 15.18% 30.54% 53.29% 0.99%

3 Ukraine 12.04% 24.60% 58.74% 4.62%

4 Afghanistan 7.78% 31.79% 58.61% 1.82%

5 Iraq 3.72% 28.86% 62.01% 5.40%

6 Syria 6.86% 39.09% 51.77% 2.29%

7 Eritrea 11.58% 37.89% 50.32% 0.21%

8 El Salvador 8.77% 21.37% 68.49% 1.37%

9 Moldova 10.16% 24.45% 59.34% 6.04%

10 Sudan 7.48% 33.07% 58.66% 0.79%

11 Guatemala 6.88% 26.32% 64.37% 2.43%

12 Colombia 9.30% 31.16% 58.60% 0.93%

13 Russia 6.38% 27.66% 58.51% 7.45%

14 Pakistan 4.14% 22.49% 71.60% 1.78%

15 Somalia 4.70% 34.23% 59.73% 1.34%

16 Iran 2.92% 5.84% 91.24% 0%

17 Ethiopia 17.24% 23.28% 59.48% 0%

18 Honduras 9.89% 24.18% 64.84% 1.10%

19 Central African Republic 5.88% 36.47% 57.65% 0%

20 Armenia 4.69% 21.88% 67.19% 6.25%

21 All Other Countries 6.06% 25.62% 65.84% 2.48%

TOTAL 11.33% 29.30% 57.04% 2.34%

NOTE: Totals may exceed 100 percent due to overlapping age categories.

Source: Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, Refugee 

Processing Center
- 40 -

TABLE VIII

Refugee Arrivals By State of Initial Resettlement, FY 2020

State

Total

Refugees Arrivals

Percentage of Total 

Arrivals

California 1,184 10.02%

Washington 1,113 9.42%

Texas 902 7.64%

New York 620 5.25%

Michigan 493 4.17%

Kentucky 476 4.03%

North Carolina 469 3.97%

Pennsylvania 450 3.81%

Arizona 444 3.76%

Ohio 427 3.61%

Minnesota 385 3.26%

Georgia 375 3.17%

Illinois 351 2.97%

Indiana 323 2.73%

Florida 318 2.69%

Massachusetts 291 2.46%

Wisconsin 250 2.12%

Maryland 246 2.08%

Virginia 244 2.07%

Missouri 216 1.83%

Oregon 195 1.65%

Idaho 195 1.65%

Colorado 191 1.62%

Utah 186 1.57%

Tennessee 181 1.53%

Nebraska 176 1.49%

Iowa 161 1.36%

Kansas 125 1.06%

New Jersey 124 1.05%

Oklahoma 103 0.87%

Nevada 81 0.69%

Rhode Island 60 0.51%

Connecticut 60 0.51%

New Hampshire 58 0.49%

South Carolina 57 0.48%

South Dakota 50 0.42%
- 41 -

North Dakota 47 0.40%

Maine 44 0.37%

Montana 34 0.29%

New Mexico 27 0.23%

Vermont 23 0.19%

Arkansas 23 0.19%

Alaska 16 0.14%

Mississippi 8 0.07%

Alabama 6 0.05%

Louisiana 4 0.03%

West Virginia 2 0.02%

TOTAL 11,814 100.00 %

Note: Arrival figures do not reflect secondary migration.

Source: Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, Refugee 

Processing Center
- 42 -

TABLE IX

Funding for Refugee Processing and Resettlement

FY 2021 and FY 2022

AGENCY FY 2021

AVAILABILITY

(IN MILLIONS)

ESTIMATED 

FY 2022

AVAILABILITY

(IN MILLIONS)

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services

 Refugee Processing 1

 $39 $122.8

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration

 Refugee Admissions 2, 3 $401.8 $869.5

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families,

Office of Refugee Resettlement

 Refugee Resettlement 4

 $561 $1,055

TOTALS $966.8 $1,772.3

1 FY 2021 and 2022 figures include cost factors to reflect Headquarters facilities rent related to the 

refugee resettlement program, staffing, general expense and following-to-join refugee processing, in 

addition to certain International Cooperative Administrative Support Services (ICASS) and Capital 

Security Cost Sharing (CSCS) costs. FY2022 includes projected staffing enhancements and 

approximately $78.8 in appropriated funds as requested in the President’s FY 2022 Budget Request. 

2 FY 2021: Includes FY 2021 Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA) appropriation of $232.9 million, 

$85.9 million in MRA carryover from FY 2020, $42 million in projected IOM loan collections/carryover, 

and an estimate of $41 million in prior year MRA recoveries. A portion of these funds will be carried 

forward into FY 2022.

3 FY 2022: Includes FY 2022 MRA budget request of $825 million ($550 million in the Admissions line 

and $275 million in the Protection Priorities line), $38.5 million in projected IOM loan collections/

carryover, and an estimate of $6 million in prior year MRA recoveries. Funds in the Protection Priorities 

line may be used for other refugee needs if not needed for resettlement costs in FY 2022.

4 FY 2021 and FY 2022: HHS’s Office of Refugee Resettlement’s (ORR) refugee benefits and services 

are also provided to asylees, Cuban and Haitian entrants, certain Amerasians from Vietnam, victims of a 

severe form of trafficking who have received certification or eligibility letters from ORR, as well as Iraqi 

and Afghan Special Immigrant Visa holders. However, only refugees are included in the refugee 

admissions ceiling; there is no admissions target for the other ORR-eligible populations. The estimated 

funding to provide cash and medical assistance, domestic medical screenings, and refugee social services 

for these populations, as well as services for unaccompanied refugee minors are included here. ORR’s 

appropriations for the Survivors of Torture and Unaccompanied Children’s Program are not included in 

this data. Funding estimates to support these populations in mainstream services such as Temporary 

Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Medicaid, and Supplemental Security Income are also not 

included, as they are not appropriated by ORR. These estimates do not include any prior year carryover 

funding. The estimated FY 2022 figures above reflect the President’s FY 2022 Budget request.
- 43 -

TABLE X

UNHCR Resettlement Statistics by Resettlement Country CY 2020 Admissions

RESETTLEMENT 

COUNTRY TOTAL

PERCENT OF TOTAL

RESETTLED

Canada 10,937 27.66%

Sweden 4,790 12.12%

France 4,169 10.55%

Australia 3,847 9.73%

Norway 3,465 8.76%

Germany 2,507 6.34%

United States 2,081 5.26%

Great Britain 1,904 4.82%

Finland 1,107 2.80%

Switzerland 934 2.36%

Netherlands 928 2.35%

New Zealand 879 2.22%

Italy 564 1.43%

Belgium 492 1.24%

Ireland 489 1.24%

Denmark 202 .51%

Iceland 91 .23%

Japan 51 .13%

Romania 46 .12%

Spain 29 .07%

Lithuania 17 .04%

Portugal 2 .01%

Korea 1 .00%

Argentina 1 .00%
- 44 -

Luxembourg 1 .00%

TOTAL 39,534 100.00%

Resettlement country figures (submissions and departures) may not match UNHCR reported figures as 

resettlement country figures may include submissions received outside of UNHCR auspices. UNHCR 

figures may also include cases in which UNHCR did not submit but assisted, i.e., obtaining exit permits 

for humanitarian admissions or family reunion.