New York, NY, February 19, 2026 — The International Rescue Committee (IRC) calls on the U.S. administration to halt the rollout of a newly released policy that claims sweeping authority to arrest and detain refugees who arrived through the U.S. resettlement program after extensive vetting. Under the policy, refugees welcomed to the United States after fleeing persecution could be detained if they have lived in the country for at least a year but have not yet been granted lawful permanent residency. This would include refugees whose applications for permanent residence remain pending because of delays caused by the government itself. These policy changes would break the promises the United States made to refugees invited to rebuild their lives in safety and would destabilize communities that opened their doors to welcome them.
Refugees arrive only after completing the most rigorous security vetting the government conducts for travelers to the United States. Admitted refugees come with the understanding that once here, they can begin healing, working, and contributing to the neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces that become their new homes. Detaining them after admission and resettlement—without cause and without regard for the trauma they have already endured—undermines the U.S. commitment to protect refugees embodied by the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), an effort supported by Republicans, Democrats, and Independents for more than four decades.
The United States should halt the rollout of this policy and unnecessary re‑vetting efforts. America has long welcomed those fleeing persecution and escaping violence. The United States should continue to honor its word, the rule of law, and protect the stability of families and communities that have invested in one another and in the promise of a fresh start.
Hans Van de Weerd, Senior Vice President for Resettlement, Asylum and Integration at the IRC, said: “The hardest way to come to America is as a refugee. Detaining people who have already passed the most extensive immigration security screening our government conducts is not in line with decades-long, bipartisan commitments to welcome families who have survived war and persecution. Subjecting refugee families to detention after they have begun rebuilding their lives and contributing to their new communities is unnecessary, retraumatizing, and profoundly unfair. This sweeping policy uses the government’s own delays in processing permanent residency applications as an excuse to detain recently resettled refugees who have committed no crime.
“The IRC urges a halt to these actions and a renewed commitment to the integrity and humanity of the refugee program.”