On September 30, 2024, President Biden in a Memorandum for the Secretary of State established the U.S. quota for admission of refugees for Fiscal 2025 at 125,000 “as justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the [U.S.] national interest.”[1]
The President also established the following regional allocations for those refugees:
Africa 30,000-50,000
East Asia 10,000-20,000
Europe & Central Asia 2,000-3,000
Latin America/Caribbean 35,000-50,000
Near East/South Asia 30,000-45,000
“The above allocation ranges are intended to provide flexibility as needs arise, but the total admissions among all of the regions may not exceed 125,000. Upon providing notification to the Judiciary Committees of the Congress, you are hereby authorized to transfer unused admissions allocated to a particular region to one or more other regions, if there is a need for greater admissions for the region or regions to which the admissions are being transferred.”
“Consistent with section 2(b)(2) of the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601(b)(2)), I hereby determine that assistance to or on behalf of persons applying for admission to the United States as part of the overseas refugee admissions program will contribute to the foreign policy interests of the United States and designate such persons for this purpose.”
“Consistent with section 101(a)(42) of the Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(42)), and after appropriate consultation with the Congress, I also specify that, for FY 2025, the following persons may, if otherwise qualified, be considered refugees for the purpose of admission to the United States within their countries of nationality or habitual residence:
- Persons in Cuba;
- Persons in Eurasia and the Baltics;
- Persons in Iraq;
- Persons in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras; and
- In certain circumstances, persons identified by a United States Embassy or by an authorized State Department referral partner in any location.”
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[1] White House, Memorandum on the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2025 (Sept. 30, 2024).