Refugee Resettlement
U.S. Refugee Resettlement
Data Platform
Tracking federal spending, subawards, and refugee arrival headcounts across all 50 states — updated daily from USASpending.gov and the Wilson/WRAPS database.
About the Data
Federal Refugee Resettlement Programs
U.S. refugee resettlement funding flows through two primary federal agencies — the Department of State (DOS/PRM) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS/ACF) — each responsible for a distinct phase of the resettlement process. The data on this platform reflects awards tracked across both agencies from FY 2009 to present.
Department of State
Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM)
$40.2B obligated (FY 2009–2026)
PRM manages the overseas and domestic infrastructure of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). Its funding covers everything from refugee identification and processing abroad to Reception & Placement grants distributed to resettlement agencies in the United States.
U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP)
Core domestic funding for Reception & Placement (R&P). Grants go to national resettlement agencies — such as IRC, USCRI, and CWS — that coordinate local affiliates providing 90-day initial support to newly arrived refugees.
Contributions to International Organizations
The largest single spending line. Funds multilateral partners — primarily UNHCR and IOM — to support refugee protection, camp assistance, voluntary repatriation, and overseas processing on behalf of the United States.
Resettlement Support Centers (RSCs)
Supports overseas processing facilities that conduct pre-departure case management, medical screenings, cultural orientation, and documentation for refugees referred for U.S. resettlement.
19.517 / 19.518 / 19.519 / 19.511 / 19.523
$4.0B combined
Overseas Refugee Assistance — Regional Programs
Region-specific bilateral assistance covering Africa, the Near East, South Asia, East Asia, and the Western Hemisphere. Funds protection, livelihoods, and durable-solution programs for refugees and displaced persons who may not ultimately resettle in the United States.
Dept. of Health & Human Services
Administration for Children and Families — Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR)
$51.3B obligated (FY 2009–2026)
ORR takes responsibility once a refugee arrives. It funds state-administered cash, medical, and social services; voluntary agency employment programs; and longer-term integration support. ORR also oversees care for unaccompanied migrant children, which accounts for a substantial share of its total obligations.
Refugee & Entrant Assistance — State/Replacement Designee Programs
The primary ORR grant stream. Flows to states and replacement designees to fund Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA), Refugee Medical Assistance (RMA), and refugee social services for newly arrived individuals during their first 12 months.
Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) Program
Funds the care, custody, and placement of unaccompanied migrant children apprehended at the border. While operationally distinct from refugee resettlement, UAC spending is administered by ORR and captured in this dataset.
Matching Grant / Personal Responsibility Education
Supports voluntary agency employment and self-sufficiency programs. The Matching Grant program allows eligible refugees to bypass public cash assistance in favor of intensive case management and rapid employment services.
Voluntary Agency Programs
Discretionary grants to national resettlement agencies for targeted services including employment, English-language training, and integration activities beyond the initial R&P period.
93.576 / 93.583 / 93.584
$1.4B combined
Discretionary, Wilson/Fish & Targeted Assistance
Discretionary grants fund pilot programs and capacity-building. Wilson/Fish grants allow states or agencies to operate outside the traditional state-administered model. Targeted Assistance Grants support localities with high concentrations of refugees and limited integration infrastructure.
93.598 / 93.604
$0.4B combined
Trafficking Victims & Torture Survivors
Provides ORR-funded benefits and services to survivors of severe trafficking and torture — populations who often share resettlement resources and service networks with refugees.
Afghan Operations: OAR & OAW
~$4.5B across agenciesFollowing the August 2021 evacuation of Afghanistan, the U.S. government launched two consecutive operations: Operation Allies Refuge (OAR), the initial military-led evacuation, and Operation Allies Welcome (OAW), the interagency humanitarian reception effort. Together these operations involved DoD (Army, Air Force), DOS, HHS/ACF, FEMA, and other agencies — with DoD alone accounting for roughly $3.4B for transportation, housing, and base operations at reception facilities. DOS and ORR covered processing, case management, and benefits for newly arrived Afghans.
OAW/OAR spending is included in this dataset where awards carry relevant keywords or Treasury Account Symbol codes, and is reflected in the Spending Explorer.
SIV Holders & USRAP: Distinct Pathways, Shared Benefits
The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) is an overseas resettlement pathway administered by DOS/PRM, through which individuals are referred by UNHCR or a U.S. embassy, vetted, and admitted to the United States as refugees. Admission under USRAP grants refugee status and full access to ORR-funded benefits.
Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) are a separate legal pathway for individuals — primarily Afghan and Iraqi nationals — who worked alongside U.S. government personnel or military forces and faced threats as a result. SIV holders are not admitted under USRAP and do not have refugee status. They are immigrants, not refugees, for legal purposes.
However, U.S. law grants SIV holders access to the same ORR-administered benefits as refugees — including Refugee Cash Assistance, Refugee Medical Assistance, and social services — for the same eligibility period. As a result, ORR spending data captured in this platform reflects services delivered to both refugee-status individuals and SIV holders, as well as other populations such as asylees and Cuban/Haitian entrants who are similarly ORR-eligible.
Data sourced from USASpending.gov and the Wilson Center WRAPS database. Updated nightly. For research purposes only.
