By: Jessica Crist
Peer-reviewed by REAL members
Introduction
U.S. immigration policy has experienced ebbs and flows over the past 20 years. Refugee legislation has remained largely unchanged since 1980 when the U.S. refugee program began, however, executive branch discretion has changed its implementation (Bolter et al., 2022). Changing executive policies around refugee admission have increased the difficulty of the resettlement process by requiring refugees to wait for longer periods of time, creating confusion regarding policy changes and adding to the trauma many refugees face when fleeing their country of origin. The Biden administration should consider creating more welcoming refugee policies. Referencing a recent report from the Migration Policy Institute (MPI), I make several recommendations for the Biden administration’s refugee policy.
U.S. refugee policy 2001-present
George W. Bush (2001-2009)
George W.Bush’s inauguration in 2001 brought a conservative shift in U.S. politics. During his first year in office, Bush lowered the U.S. refugee admission ceiling–the number of spots allotted to resettle refugees in the U.S. each fiscal year (FY)–from 90,000 to 80,000 (LIRS, 2020; MPI, 2022). The effects of the terrorist attacks on September 11th further slowed immigration. Only 69,886 refugees were admitted in FY 2001 despite the 80,000 refugee ceiling (MPI, 2022). As the U.S. recovered from the attacks, Bush lowered the refugee admission ceiling to 70,000 refugees in FY 2002 but only 27,000 refugees entered the U.S. that year (MPI, 2022). In the wake of 9/11, rising nationalism created a less-welcoming environment for refugees.
Refugee admissions gradually rose during the latter half of the Bush presidency. In 2008, he raised the ceiling to 80,000 (MPI, 2022). In FY 2008, the final year of the Bush administration, 60,191 refugees entered the U.S. (MPI, 2022). Though Bush took a strong stance against undocumented immigration and enacted policies that made immigrating more difficult, the administration maintained an open policy toward refugees. This set a precedent for future administrations, making the U.S. immigration system more selective and difficult with intense application and screening processes.
Barack Obama (2009-2017)
For many, Barack Obama’s historic election as the first African-American president sparked hope for change in the United States. During the first three years of Obama’s presidency, he kept the refugee admissions ceiling at 80,000 (MPI, 2022). In 2009, the Obama administration admitted 74,654 refugees, the most refugees admitted in nearly ten years (MPI, 2022). Though refugee admissions were steady in 2009 and 2010, the number of refugees accepted in the U.S. in 2011 dropped to 56,424 (MPI, 2022). Subsequently, in 2012, the Obama administration lowered the refugee admission ceiling to 76,000, followed by 70,000 in 2013 (MPI, 2022). This lowering of the refugee admissions ceiling and drop in refugees entering the U.S. was mainly due to strong political opposition in Congress and in individual states. In his final year as president, Obama raised the ceiling to 85,000 and 84,994 refugees entered the U.S. (MPI, 2022). Though Obama did receive criticism for his harsh deportation of many migrants in the U.S., his other immigration policies and open attitude toward displaced persons created a welcoming atmosphere for refugees in the U.S.
Donald Trump (2017-2021)
Trump’s unprecedented election in 2016 highlighted the growing desire for isolationist policies in the country. Trump was the first U.S president to win based on an immigration agenda (Bolter et al., 2022). Through the 472 immigration related executive actions that spanned his presidency, Trump increased executive branch influence on immigration policy (Bolter et al., 2022). This impacted refugee policy and specifically how many refugees were able to resettle in the United States. Trump’s “Travel Ban” executive order on October 24th, 2017, which lasted until December 23rd, 2017, deprioritized resettlement applications from applicants in eleven countries, and deemed these countries to be “high risk” to U.S. national security (Bolter et al., 2022). It also created additional vetting for refugees from “high risk” countries that included longer interviews, separate interviews for children, and an expanded list of “national security indicators” that would warrant further screenings (IRAP, 2021). These additional vetting procedures delayed resettlement applications, creating a backlog in the immigration system. Trump’s policy changes made it harder for refugees from certain regions to be resettled in the U.S., resulting in a decrease in the number of refugees admitted from the Middle East and an increase in those admitted from Europe (Bolter et al., 2022).
Trump’s relentless reductions to the refugee admission ceiling greatly affected refugee admittance. In 2017, Trump lowered the refugee admission ceiling to 50,000–the lowest in recorded history to that point in time (MPI, 2022). In 2020, Trump dropped the refugee admission ceiling to an all-time low of 18,000 and only accepted 11,814 refugees (MPI, 2022). This was partially due to the impact on travel and the closure of U.S. embassies during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, Trump’s previous refugee admissions numbers show a downward trend that was only exacerbated by the pandemic (Bolter et al., 2022; MPI, 2022).
With reduced resettlement budgets, U.S. states faced growing challenges to resettlement (Bolter et al., 2022). Overall, the decrease in refugee arrivals and funding cuts damaged U.S. resettlement infrastructure as well as shrunk the network and capacity of resettlement organizations across the country (Bolter et al., 2022). Such damage will take years to rebuild, impacting the lives of refugees waiting to be resettled.
Joseph Biden (2021-present)
In his first year as president, Joe Biden took steps to reverse some Trump-era refugee policies. In FY 2021, Biden raised the refugee admission ceiling to 62,500, the highest ceiling since 2016, however, only 11,411 refugees were admitted (MPI, 2022). Low admissions can be attributed to the ongoing pandemic, the chaos of the Afghan evacuation plan, and the staggering U.S. immigration system backlog (Bolter et al., 2022). Approximately 90,000 refugees have completed pre-screening but await their U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) interview (U.S. DOS, U.S. DHS, and U.S. DHHS, 2021). For FY 2022, Biden raised the admission ceiling to 125,000–the highest in over 20 years (MPI, 2022). While Biden has voiced his commitment to restoring welcoming refugee policies, he has received criticism for his lack of action in bringing these policies to fruition. To avoid regressing to Trump-era refugee admissions numbers and to ensure an effective and efficient refugee resettlement process, the administration needs to enact further reforms.
Recommendations for the Biden Administration
The Biden administration should invest significant resources into resettlement organizations, such as the International Rescue Committee and the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services. Federal investment can rebuild lost staff, bolster programming, and increase capacity to resettle additional refugees. The Biden administration must also allocate more staff to U.S. embassies and government offices, such as USCIS, and ensure the opening of all U.S. embassies around the world. By providing more staff to embassies and government offices to increase capacity and prevent delays, the U.S. can reduce the backlog of cases. Biden must reopen U.S. embassies quickly, following the latest Covid-19 safety measures. This will increase the speed and number of resettlements to the U.S.
Conclusion
The last 20 years of the U.S. refugee program have seen many changes. Trump administration refugee reforms will have a lasting effect on the resettlement of refugees in the U.S., and an adverse impact on our historic image as a country friendly to migration. To effectively resettle refugees and increase refugee admissions, President Biden needs to do more than raise the refugee ceiling. Through increasing funding and staffing and the reopening of U.S. embassies and government agencies, the Biden administration can not only bring back the successful admissions rates of 20 years ago, but must also continue to transform the refugee admission infrastructure to uphold the U.S. commitment to a humane and welcoming immigration system.
| Year | Refugee Admission Ceiling | Number of Refugees Admitted |
| George W. Bush | ||
| 2000 | 90,000 | 73,147 |
| 2001 | 80,000 | 69,886 |
| 2002 | 70,000 | 27,131 |
| 2003 | 70,000 | 28,403 |
| 2004 | 70,000 | 52,873 |
| 2005 | 70,000 | 53,813 |
| 2006 | 70,000 | 41,223 |
| 2007 | 70,000 | 48,282 |
| 2008 | 80,000 | 60,191 |
| Barack Obama | ||
| 2009 | 80,000 | 74,654 |
| 2010 | 80,000 | 73,311 |
| 2011 | 80,000 | 56,424 |
| 2012 | 76,000 | 58,238 |
| 2013 | 70,000 | 69,926 |
| 2014 | 70,000 | 69,987 |
| 2015 | 70,000 | 69,933 |
| 2016 | 85,000 | 84,994 |
| Donald Trump | ||
| 2017 | 50,000 | 53,716 |
| 2018 | 45,000 | 22,533 |
| 2019 | 30,000 | 30,000 |
| 2020 | 18,000 | 11,814 |
| Joe Biden | ||
| 2021 | 62,500 | 11,411 |
| 2022 | 125,000 | TBD |
Elaboration by the author, February 8, 2022 from (MPI, 2022).
All opinions are exclusively those of the author and not of George Washington University, the Graduate School of Education and Human Development, the Refugee Educational Advancement Laboratory or any of its members or other entities.
References
Bolter, Jessica, Emma Israel, and Sarah Pierce. (2022, February). Four Years of Profound Change: Immigration Policy during the Trump Presidency. Migration Policy Institute (MPI). https://www.migrationpolicy.org/sites/default/files/publications/mpi-trump-at-4-report-final.pdf
International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP). (2021, June). Debunking ‘Extreme Vetting’: Recommendations to Build Back the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. Retrieved February 8, 2022, from, https://refugeerights.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Vetting-Report-2020-v6-REVISED-JUNE-2021-1.pdf
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS). (2020, September 1). Frequently Asked Questions: Refugee Ceiling and the Presidential Determination. Retrieved on February 16, 2022 from, https://www.lirs.org/faqs-refugee-ceiling/
Migration Policy Institute (MPI). (2022). U.S. Annual Refugee Resettlement Ceilings and Number of Refugees Admitted, 1980-Present. Retrieved February 8, 2022 from, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/data-hub/charts/us-annual-refugee-resettlement-ceilings-and-number-refugees-admitted-united?width=850&height=850&iframe=true
U.S. Department of State (DOS), U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). (2021). Proposed Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2022: Report to the Congress. Washington, DC. https://www.wrapsnet.org/documents/Report+to+Congress+for+FY+2022+USRAP.pdf