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REFUGEE AFFAIRS DIVISION1

MISSION

Refugee Affairs Division staff provide resettlement opportunities to qualified refugees from around the globe while ensuring the integrity of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program and our national security.

RAD Chief

Refugee CorpsAdjudications

Security Vetting/Fraud

Headquarters

Management

Policy

Training and Quality Assurance

Security Vetting/Fraud Policy

RAD Deputy Chief

REFUGEE AFFAIRS DIVISION

Presenter

Presentation Notes

We have a break out between HQ RAD and the Refugee Corps, with the HQ RAD staff involved in supporting the Refugee Corps, developing policy and guidance, and facilitating training. The Refugee Corps is a group of highly training professional grade civil servants, most with a JD or Master’s degree. They are expected to travel up to 180 days per year conducting refugee adjudications Currently, the Refugee Corps includes: Refugee Officers - 197 Supervisory Refugee Officers - 32 (includes 2 Domestic SROs)

U.S. Refugee Admissions ProgramEvery year, immigration law requires that Executive Branch officials review the refugee situation and project possible participation of the United States in resettling refugees. From this review, the President in consultation with Congress, sets the annual refugee admissions ceiling.

USRAP PartnersUSCIS: Interviews applicants and determines eligibility for resettlement to the U.S.Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM): Manages U.S. Refugee Admissions ProgramResettlement Support Centers (RSCs): Prescreens applicants, collects biographical information, and processes approved casesUNHCR: Refers refugees for resettlement as part of its protection mandate; the majority of referrals to USRAP are made by UNHCR. CBP: Admits refugees to the U.S.HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR): Provides post-admission benefits to refugees

UNHCR Registration and Resettlement Referral

RSC Conducts prescreening interview, initiates biographic

checksUSCIS reviews checks, collects biometrics,

conducts eligibility interview

USCIS adjudicates form I-590, reviewing admissibility and eligibility

for refugee classification

RSC processes approved cases for travel, including medical exams and sponsorship by a

domestic resettlement agency

Refugee travel information collected on flight manifests and is screened prior to boarding by

TSA/CBP

CBP determines if applicant is admissible to the U.S. and admits applicant as a refugee

U.S. REFUGEE ADMISSIONS PROGRAM

U.S. REFUGEE STATISTICS

Fiscal Year Interviews Admissions

FY 2012 75,751 58,238

FY 2013 70,828 69,926

FY 2014 67,870 69,987

FY 2015 66,652 69,931

FY 2016 120,831 84,995

FY 2017 46,097 53,716

FY 2018 26,170 22,491

FY 2018 Accomplishments

•USCIS completed two reviews of the USRAP pursuant to Executive Orders and instituted a series of measures, which will make the program more secure.

•USCIS interviewed more than 26,000 refugee applicants in 45 different countries.

•FDNS Forward Deployment Officers joined 13 refugee processing circuit rides to provide real time case review.

•The equivalent of approximately 100 Refugee Affairs Division staff assisted the Asylum Division throughout the year.

USCIS Officer Training Officers undergo extensive training in:

Refugee law Grounds of inadmissibility Fraud detection and prevention Security protocols Interviewing techniques Credibility analysis Country conditions research

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Presenter

Presentation Notes

RAIO CT – Refugee, Asylum, and International Operations Training– 2 weeks self-led distance training plus 3 weeks residential training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center RDOTC – Refugee Division Officer Training Course - 4 weeks of division specific training on refugee adjudications MERP – Middle East Refugee Processing training – 5 days FACT – DOS Foreign Affairs Counter Terrorism Training – 5 days IFAM – DOS Iraqi Familiarization Training – 5 days Pre-Departure Briefings prior to each circuit ride to go over the country conditions for cases for the cases they are likely to see in the field, security and fraud related information that may pertain to this particular group of refugee applicants, as well as any emphasis on specialized interview techniques that should be used (i.e., large groups of child applicants or survivors of torture). Credible Fear Training – 4 hours of self-led distance training plus 3 days classroom training Affirmative Asylum – 5 days in classroom training

Refugee Status Determination

How are refugees recognized?

The 1951 Refugee Convention is the foundation of international refugee law.

Host countries have the primary responsibility for identifying who is a refugee.

UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) conducts refugee status determinations in certain countries and is a key partner in the USRAP.

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REFUGEE DEFINITION

any person who is outside any country of such person’s nationality or, in the case of a person having no nationality, is outside any country in which such person last habitually resided, and who is unable or unwilling to return to, and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of, that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.

*INA § 101(a)(42)(A) also applies to asylum adjudications.

INA § 101(a)(42)(A)*

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USCIS Eligibility Determination

Access - Does the principal applicant qualify under a processing priority (i.e., P-1, P-2 or P-3)?

Refugee Definition - Does the principal applicant meet all aspects of the refugee definition under INA 101(a)(42)?

Firm Resettlement – Has the principal applicant been permanently resettled in a 3rd country with legal status, and does applicant enjoy rights and privileges afforded other such permanent status members of the 3rd country?

Admissibility - Is the principal applicant otherwise admissible or do any of the grounds of inadmissibility under INA Section 212(a) apply?

Presenter

Presentation Notes

P-3 and CAM cases also have an initial access determination domestically (RAVU).

Security ChecksBiographic Checks Consular Lookout and Support System (CLASS) Security Advisory Opinion (SAO) Interagency Check (IAC)

Biometric ChecksFingerprint (10 print) collected by USG officers either at prescreening or interview FBI NGI (formerly IAFIS) DHS (OBIM) IDENT DOD ABIS

Refugees are also subject to checks carried out by TSA and CBP on all travelers to the US.

Presenter

Presentation Notes

As a rule, our vetting is robust and thorough. We are, however, not complacent and never cease to make our vetting process stronger. UNHCR conducts regular screenings to look for red flags on cases which could render a refugee ineligible for resettlement under US laws and security protocols RSC caseworkers conduct intake interviews with applicants to obtain biometric and claim information, completing the I-590 form and ensuring we have detailed information including military history, as well as initiate the biographic security checks: Biographic checks of primary names and variations against the Consular Lookout System (CLASS) - this includes the Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB), the Drug Enforcement Agency, the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Center, and INTERPOL, including criminal history, immigration history, and records of prior visa applications. Security Advisory Opinions (SAO) for individuals meeting certain criteria – a check against law enforcement and intelligence databases. Interagency Checks (IAC) – checks against intelligence community holdings, including the National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) for all refugees with a certain date range (this is recurrent vetting). All Refugee Officers interview with a mind to establish the applicants meet the refugee definition (including not barred as a persecutor or for firm resettlement) and are not inadmissible; they are trained on how to elicit testimony, test credibility, identify security concerns, know security protocols, and conduct extensive country conditions research Controlled Application Review and Resolution (CARRP) is conducted on any case identified as having a security concern raised during interview. Biometric information is collected for those 14 – 79 and bounced against the FBI’s Next Generation Identification System and DHS’s Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT). The prints are screened against watchlist information, but also against encounters with immigration in the US and overseas. Working with DHS, the Department of Defense augments biometric screening on refugee applicants who fall within prescribed age ranges against their own databases. All refugee officers interviewing Syrian and Iraqis undergo an additional week-long training focused on Syria and Iraq specific topics, including classified briefings (MERP). USCIS staff provide intelligence-driven support to adjudications to identify threats and lines of inquiry (SVPI and FDNS) as well as conduct watchlisting and disseminating intelligence information reports on applicants determined to present national security threats. There is 100% supervisory review of all refugee officer decisions. Before an approved refugee arrives in the US, Customs and Border Protection reviews the manifest of all refugees and perform vetting before they arrive at the Port of Entry and additional background checks upon arrival.

Confidentiality Federal Regulations at 8 CFR 208.6 generally prohibit disclosure of

information contained in or pertaining to asylum applications to third parties, without the applicant’s consent, except under certain limited circumstances.

As a matter of policy, refugee case information is treated as confidential in the same way as asylum information.

Relatives & other U.S. Government agencies are considered 3rd parties, but information may be disclosed to a U.S government agency or contractor having a need to examine the information in connection with adjudication of the application, or if another exception applies.

Confidentiality CompromisedConfidentiality is breached when info contained in or

pertaining to a refugee application is disclosed to a third party in violation of the regulations, including:

the fact that the applicant has applied for refugee status

specific facts or allegations pertaining to the individual refugee claim

facts sufficient to give rise to a reasonable inference that the applicant has applied for refugee status

Benefits of Refugee Status Refugees have indefinite status granted upon admission

Refugees are authorized to work incident to status, and receive certain social and health service benefits for a limited period of time

Derivatives (i.e., spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21) may accompany or follow to join the principal refugee

Refugees are required to apply for adjustment one year after entering the United States, and may apply for naturalization after five years of residency.

More detailed information on theU.S. Refugee Admissions Program

is available at www.uscis.gov

under “Humanitarian” programs.

http://www.uscis.gov/

refugee affairs division - homepage | uscis...fy 2014 67,870 69,987 fy 2015 66,652 69,931 fy 2016...

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