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Arizona Refugee Resettlement - FAQ

What is the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program?

A federally-funded program that provides cash assistance, medical assistance, health screening, and social services to newly arrived Refugees.

What is the Arizona Refugee Resettlement Program?

The Arizona RRP promotes effective Refugee resettlement that best assists them with achieving social and economic self-sufficiency and well-being as quickly as possible after arrival in the United States.

Who is a Refugee?

Refugees are persons who are outside of and unable or unwilling to avail themselves of the protection of their home country because of persecution or fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.

Who determines where and how many Refugees are resettled in the United States?

Annually, the U.S. Department of State, in coordination with Congress, makes a recommendation to the President of the United States at which time he signs a Presidential Determination.

What are some of the services that Refugees are eligible for in Arizona?

  • Employment services
  • Case management
  • Cash assistance
  • Temporary medical Insurance coverage
  • Behavioral health services
  • Services to elderly refugees (ages 60+)
  • Unaccompanied Refugee Minors Program
  • Assistance to victims of torture
  • Assistance to victims of human trafficking

How many refugees are resettled in Arizona each year?

The number of refugees resettled in Arizona varies depending on how many total refugees are resettled in the U.S. However, Arizona resettled 647 refugees in Federal Fiscal Year 2021.

What is the process for a refugee to be resettled in the United States?

The United States accepts those refugees considered most vulnerable around the world. After registering as a refugee with a U.S. Embassy, non-governmental organization (NGO), or with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), refugees are either admitted as candidates for resettlement directly by the U.S. Refugee Program (USRAP) or referred by UNHCR.

Resettlement candidates then must go through a comprehensive security screening by the Department of Homeland Security, the National Counterterrorism Center, the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Center, the Department of State, and the Department of Defense. This security process is more comprehensive than that for any other category of foreign national entering the U.S.

The refugees then have a face-to-face interview with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service before being conditionally approved, pending a health screening. Those refugees who are approved for resettlement are then resettled in locations based on consultations between the Department of State and national resettlement agencies.

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