According to the U.S., a refugee is defined as a person outside the country of his or her nationality, who is unable or unwilling to return to that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution based on his or her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion(Fact Sheet: U.S. Refugee Resettlement, 2020). There is currently "at least 79.5 million people around the world [who] have been forced to flee their homes" (UNHCR, 2020a). 

The Refugee Act of 1980 established the legal basis for admissions for refugees and asylum seekers in the U.S. The act "defined a refugee, established the Reception and Placement (R&P) program for initial resettlement under the U.S. Department of State, and created the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)" (Fact Sheet: U.S. Refugee Resettlement, 2020). 

The resettlement process involves identifying refugees needing resettlement, referral to the U.S., background and security clearance checks, in-person interviews, medical screenings, and matching with a sponsor agency (UNHCR, 2020b)

Refugees come to the U.S. from different countries around the world. "Since 1980, the United States has welcomed more than 3.8 million refugees and asylees" (Pompeo, 2020). Figure 1 shows the countries and regions where refugees are arriving from.

Did you know that the number of refugees who can enter the U.S. is determined by the president? Each year, the president of the United States determines how many refugees may enter the country. During his term, Trump signed the  Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions that authorized the resettlement of up to 15,000 refugees in the United States in the Fiscal Year 2021 (Pompeo, 2020). Figure 2 shows the U.S. annual refugee resettlement cap. The annual resettlement cap decreasing from 110,000 in 2017 to 15,000 in 2021, gives fewer opportunities to refugees to start a new life and get a job. 

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