Biden previously conceded that his goal of 125,000 refugee admissions within the first fiscal year of his presidency “will still be hard to hit,” but the expected ceiling indicates how many refugees may be admitted to the US in the coming fiscal year.
Earlier this year, the Biden administration flip-flopped on raising the ceiling for fiscal year 2021, and after blowback, raised it to 62,500 people.
The US had for years outpaced other countries in refugee admissions, allowing millions into the country since the Refugee Act of 1980. But the program took a hit under former President Donald Trump, who slashed the number of refugees allowed to come to the US and put a series of limits in place curtailing who was eligible.
Even so, at its lowest point, nearly 12,000 refugees were admitted under Trump.
The challenges, refugee advocates say, have only been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic and Biden’s initial hesitancy to sign off on increasing the Trump-era ceiling, which dictates how many refugees are admitted in a given fiscal year.
This story has been updated with additional details.
