Biden Administration Announces Welcome Corps, a New Private Refugee Sponsorship Program

Washington, DC: The Biden administration on January 19 announced the Welcome Corps, a new pilot program that allows Americans to privately sponsor refugees from around the world. The purpose of the program is to increase and deepen the involvement of local communities in refugee resettlement, recognizing the impactful role that individuals have long played in supporting newcomers.

The program will require sponsoring individuals to form a group and provide initial resettlement assistance to newly arrived refugees. These groups will first be vetted, trained, and certified to confirm they have raised sufficient funds and completed a welcome plan outlining how they will ensure newcomers are supported. Once a sponsoring group is certified, they may be matched with a refugee individual or family of any nationality who has completed all application and vetting steps required by the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). The Biden administration has suggested the program may later be expanded to allow private sponsors to identify specif- ic refugee cases to refer to the USRAP.

The pilot program’s announcement comes amid years of historically low refugee admissions, including in the new fiscal year. In the first three months of FY 2023, only 6,750 refugees have been resettled towards a target of 125,000 according to State Department data.

In response to the announcement, Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, President and CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, said:

“We commend the Biden administra- tion on this forward-thinking approach to leveraging the generosity of the American spirit. The Welcome Corps complements the refugee resettlement system and boasts potential to strengthen ties between refugees and the communities they will come to call home. We are hopeful that this pilot will be thoughtfully implemented to make certain that sponsors are sufficiently equipped with the necessary resources and know-how to ensure the best possible outcomes for refugee families in their care.

It is worth stressing that the ability to resettle refugees domestically has not been the fundamental challenge of the last two years. The Biden administration must prioritize the streamlining of refugee admissions, which remain regrettably low this fiscal year. Without urgent action to increase efficiency, it risks letting the compassion of individual sponsors and the expertise of professional refugee resettlement organizations go to waste. At a time of unprecedented global displacement, there are far too many vulnerable children and families depending on the full restoration of our nation’s humanitarian leadership.”

Founded in 1939, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) is the largest faith-based national nonprofit dedicated exclusively to serving refugees, asylum seekers, and other vulnerable immigrant communities in the United States. Through nearly 80 years of service and advocacy, LIRS has helped over 500,000 migrants and refugees rebuild their lives in America.