New York, NY, December 12, 2025 — The International Rescue Committee (IRC) warns that the administration’s recent unprecedented actions are intensifying uncertainty for thousands of refugees and asylees, and undermine decades of bi-partisan support for refugee commitments. US immigration authorities are re-reviewing long-standing refugee determinations, freezing asylum decisions, and re-scrutinizing US legal residents. These actions threaten to upend lives and fracture communities. They undermine America’s commitment to protect people seeking freedom from oppression regardless of country of origin.
In recent days, the IRC has seen the devastating consequences of these policies. Dozens of IRC clients from Afghanistan, Burundi, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, El Salvador, Eritrea, Iran, Myanmar, Sudan, Ukraine, and Venezuela had naturalization oath ceremonies, green card interviews, and citizenship interviews abruptly cancelled without explanation. A refugee family has received a notice re-opening their case. These clients had already undergone intensive vetting and background investigations. This re-vetting is creating grave uncertainty for their futures and could force them to recount the worst horrors of their lives to provide proof of their refugee eligibility once again.
Hans Van de Weerd, Senior Vice President, Resettlement, Asylum and Integration at the International Rescue Committee (IRC), said: “Many of our refugee and asylee clients and staff are worried. Some had waited decades in refugee camps before arriving in the U.S. They followed immigration processes and had begun to rebuild their lives. They found work, settled kids in schools, and became part of local communities and faith groups. Now, clients are calling us expressing grave uncertainty that their future here is over and that they and their children could be deported, in some cases, to face persecution or even death.
“Our staff are doing their best to comfort distraught refugee clients and to prepare them for these new traumatizing legal processes. But the needs will be immense. The IRC alone has served more than 100,000 resettled refugees, Afghan SIVs, asylees, and other clients who may be subject to costly and disruptive redetermination processes. Given the scale of this unprecedented review and cuts in funding for refugee programs, humanitarian organizations will need additional support to deliver these services.”
Note to Editors:
- Recent immigration actions by the administration include: pausing processing of refugees’ green card applications and potentially subjecting those admitted during the prior administration to redetermination of their refugee status, freezing visa and green card applications for Afghans who aided the U.S. mission, banning immigration processes for countries subject to the travel ban and reviewing all green card holders from these countries, and halting asylum decisions by the immigration service for all nationalities.
- Prior to arriving in America through the resettlement process, refugees are subject to extensive background investigations by multiple agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and the Department of Defense. Specially trained DHS personnel conduct in-person interviews of every applicant to verify that they meet the legal requirements for refugee status and resettlement to the United States.