The Biden administration is launching a new immigration policy aimed at allowing American families who are citizens or residents to sponsor people from around the world seeking asylum in the United States, fleeing wars or violence.
Under the program, called “Welcome Corps” and modeled after a system in place in Canada, groups of at least five individuals who are citizens or residents in the U.S. can sponsor refugees if they invest $2,275 per refugee. They will also have to undergo background checks and present a plan detailing how they will assist the newcomer.
These government-approved private sponsors will play the role of traditional resettlement agencies for at least 90 days after the refugee’s arrival, helping them access housing and other basic needs such as food, medical services, education, and public benefits for which they qualify.
During the first phase of the program, State Department officials will match approved sponsors with refugees abroad who have already been cleared to come to the U.S. By mid-2023, officials plan to allow potential sponsors to identify refugees abroad whom they wish to help.
In a statement on Thursday (19), Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the “Welcome Corps” initiative will help the U.S. increase refugee admissions and called the program the “boldest in refugee resettlement in four decades.”
The State Department said it hopes to recruit 10,000 private sponsors to resettle at least 5,000 refugees during the first year of the “Welcome Corps.” Organizations with experience in resettling refugees will be tasked with overseeing the sponsor application process, providing training and resources to sponsors, and monitoring their progress.
The “Welcome Corps” initiative is the latest effort by the Biden administration to expand legal immigration channels for refugees and immigrants with family members and others in the U.S. willing to sponsor them financially.
The federal government had already announced a few weeks ago another plan for individuals residing in the U.S. to sponsor the entry of citizens from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela as part of an effort to prevent immigrants from those countries from crossing the southern border illegally. Immigrants from these countries will be able to live and work legally in the U.S. temporarily through parole.
In contrast, refugees arriving under the private sponsorship initiative will be eligible for permanent legal status and, eventually, American citizenship, as they will enter through the traditional refugee program.
Formally established in 1980, the U.S. refugee program has granted safe haven to over 3 million refugees fleeing armed conflicts, ethnic persecution, and other forms of violence. Refugees undergo interviews, security checks, and medical examinations as part of a years-long process before gaining the right to travel to the U.S.
In fiscal year 2022, the U.S. admitted 25,465 refugees, using only 20% of the 125,000 refugee slots allocated by Biden. In the first three months of fiscal year 2023 (which began last October), for which Biden again set the goal of welcoming up to 125,000 refugees, the U.S. resettled fewer than 7,000 refugees.
While the pandemic temporarily suspended refugee admissions and delayed interviews, the program was drastically reduced under the policy guidelines issued by President Trump, who argued that refugees posed economic, national security, and cultural threats to the U.S.
The Trump administration drastically cut refugee admissions, allocating a historic low of 15,000 slots in fiscal year 2021.