Global Refugee Resettlement: Background and Selected Issues (CRS Report for Congress)
| Release Date |
Nov. 8, 2024 |
| Report Number |
IF12813 |
| Report Type |
In Focus |
| Authors |
Rhoda Margesson |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
During the past decade, the global number of refugees
(including asylum-seekers—those who have applied for
refugee status but whose claim has not yet been definitively
evaluated) tripled to over 46 million people worldwide.
Congress funds and oversees U.S. humanitarian assistance
to refugees, and some Members have demonstrated an
ongoing interest in the policies and practices that govern
refugee resettlement at the global and domestic levels.
As of June 2024 (latest data available), the United Nations
estimated that 122.6 million people were forcibly displaced
worldwide due to armed conflict, widespread violence, or
human rights violations. Those displaced include refugees,
asylum seekers, and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
Displaced populations may be separated from their homes
for long periods, particularly in instances of large-scale,
protracted crises or ongoing armed conflicts where political
solutions have proven elusive. According to the United
Nations, on average, a person is displaced as a refugee for
20 years. Some refugees are able to return to their country
of origin and others integrate with local populations in the
country to which they fled; however, for millions of
refugees without these options, less than one percent may
be eligible for refugee resettlement in another country.
Refugee resettlement is the transfer of refugees from a host
country where they have received temporary asylum to
another country that has agreed to admit them and usually
grant them permanent settlement with legal and physical
protection, including access to civil, political, economic,
social, and cultural rights similar to those enjoyed by
nationals. Generally, resettlement eventually leads to
permanent resident status or even citizenship in the
resettlement country.
Although the number of global resettlement spots available
is significantly smaller than the refugee population, experts
view resettlement as an important tool of refugee protection
and response. Resettlement can also be a way for
governments to demonstrate to countries hosting refugees
and other donor countries that they are carrying some of the
burden of the impact of refugees, even symbolically. Other
complementary programs that support refugees include
humanitarian admission programs, individual sponsorship,
and admission of relatives beyond existing family
reunification programs. Countries may also expand their
capacity to receive refugees through labor mobility and
private investor schemes and student scholarships, among
other approaches.
