Biden admin launching pilot program that would allow Americans to sponsor refugees for $2,275 eachBizPac Review, Jan 19, 2023
The Biden administration is set to launch a new pilot program on Thursday that will ostensibly allow groups of Americans to directly sponsor refugees from across the globe through the State Department program called the Welcome Corps.
The program permits groups of private American citizens to sponsor individuals through the Refugee Resettlement Program if they can cough up enough money to do so, pass background checks, and devise a plan on how to support them, according to Fox News Digital. It is similar to a model used in Canada.
The program was first reported by Reuters. Groups of at least five people will be required to raise a minimum of $2,275 per refugee. Then refugees can begin the process of going through background checks.
[...]
The Biden administration has also facilitated those who seek to sponsor evacuees from both Afghanistan and Ukraine, as part of an effort to create pathways for migrants and refugees who are ostensibly fleeing harm. The government launched a program last year to bring in 100,000 Ukrainians via a program using humanitarian parole authority after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The program reportedly does not contribute to the refugee cap.
Biden has also announced an expansion of the humanitarian parole program that allows up to 30,000 Venezuelan, Cuban, Haitian, and Nicaraguan migrants to fly into the country if they have a US-based sponsor. The move is purportedly in response to a surge in illegal immigrants at the border.
Sasha Chanoff, who is the founder of RefugePoint which identifies people in need of resettlement, claims the sponsorships could be one of the most significant developments for the US refugee program since it began in 1980.
“It invites Americans to get involved in new ways,” he declared, according to Reuters.
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2023/01/19/biden-admin-launching-pilot-program-that-would-allow-americans-to-sponsor-refugees-for-2275-each-1325932/