Biden to Keep Target of Accepting 125,000 Refugees Next Year, Memo Says

U.S. President Joe Biden provides an update on the Hurricane Helene response and recovery efforts, during remarks in the White House Oval Office in Washington, U.S., September 30, 2024. (REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein)

(Reuters) - President Joe Biden will keep the administration's target of accepting 125,000 refugees next year, according to a memo delivered to the U.S. State Department on Monday.

The Biden administration is on pace to bring in 100,000 people through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program in fiscal year 2024, which ends on Sept. 30, according to an internal report to U.S. lawmakers, Reuters has reported.

If successful, that would be the highest level in three decades.

"The admission of up to 125,000 refugees to the United States during Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 is justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national interest," Biden wrote in the memo.

Immigration is a top voter concern in the run-up to the Nov. 5 elections that will pit Kamala Harris, a Democrat and Biden's vice president, against Republican Donald Trump. Trump greatly curtailed refugee admissions during his 2017-2021 presidency and has pledged a wide-ranging immigration crackdown if re-elected.

The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program typically is available to people outside of their home countries who face persecution based on race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. Applicants must be outside the U.S. to qualify for the status.

Biden first aimed for 125,000 refugee admissions in fiscal year 2022, an ambitious target that has remained elusive even after years of stepping up refugee processing.

 

(Reporting By Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Chris Reese and Muralikumar Anantharaman)