U.S. Refugee Policies

Has the United States always taken in refugees? 

Throughout much of U.S. history, refugees and immigrants - including religious minorities, political dissenters, and people affected by war and upheaval - were welcomed into the country. The number of immigrants coming to the U.S. has changed over the years due to events in the world as well as rules established by U.S. immigration laws.  

Since 1945, American ideals and our nation's role as a world power have pushed the U.S. to play a leading role in welcoming refugees. Since World War II, the United States has resettled more refugees than any other country, including: 

• Europeans displaced during World War II, including victims of Nazi persecution  

• People fleeing Communist regimes in the Soviet Union and Hungary, Poland, Yugoslavia 

• People fleeing Communist regimes in Korea and China 

• People fleeing the Communist regime in Cuba 

• Southeast Asian refugees following the end of the Vietnam War 

• Refugees from wars in the Balkans in the 1990s  

Despite our national values and history of acceptance, America also has demonstrated opposition to refugees and other immigrants. The United States restricted immigration from China in the late 19th century and from eastern and southern Europe in the 1920s. During World War II, the United States turned away refugees from Nazi Germany. Since then, a majority of Americans in opinion polls were opposed to admitting Vietnamese refugees in the 1970s, Cuban refugees in the 1980s, Haitians in the 1990s, and children from Central America in the 2000s.   

What is our current policy towards refugees? 

In 2016, one of President Trump's campaign promises was a "total and complete shutdown of all Muslims entering the United States." His January 2017 Executive Order sought to suspend the refugee admissions program, and banned travel from specified countries, citing security concerns. While the refugee admissions program survived due to legal challenges, a subsequent Executive Order successfully suspended the program for 120 days.

When the ban expired in October, refugee admissions resumed with additional stringent screening measures in place. Refugees from eleven countries were put on hold for additional scrutiny. Notably, nationals from these countries comprised 44% of the refugees admitted to the U.S. in 2016. In addition, an important family reunification program that allowed refugees to bring their spouses and children to the U.S. was also halted indefinitely. 

The number of refugees allowed into the U.S. is determined annually by the President. In federal fiscal year 2018, the Trump administration set the ceiling for refugee admissions at 45,000, the lowest since the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program was created in 1980. The new ceiling of 45,000 is 41% of the ceiling of 110,000 set in the previous fiscal year.