Cultural Connections Committee

Gate City Immigrant Initiative March 23, 2016 9:00AM – 11:00AM City Hall – Auditorium Gate City Immigrant Initiative held a community presentation on the refugee resettlement process. Ascentria Care Alliance and International Institute of New England presented to 35 attendees. Below is the step by step process for resettlement security screening: D STATELED, Resettlement is considered a durable solution for refugees who cannot return to their countries of origin or integrate into the current country that is hosting them. Resettlement to a country like the U.S. presents a life-saving alternative for a very small number of refugees around the world – less than one half of one percent. Refugees seeking resettlement through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) must pass through a number of steps aimed at ensuring that they do not pose a security risk. —STEP 1 Refugee Status: A refugee is someone who has fled from his or her home country and cannot return because he or she has a well-founded fear of persecution based on religion, race, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group. Certain individuals of special humanitarian concern to the U.S. who are within their countries of nationality may also be considered as refugees eligible for admission to the U.S. —STEP 2 Referral to the United States: A refugee who meets the criteria for resettlement in the U.S. is referred to the USRAP by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), a U.S. embassy, or a trained non-governmental organization. Some refugees, including family members of refugees already in the U.S. and refugees who belong to specific groups identified by the Department of State, may be eligible for direct access to the USRAP and do not need a referral. —STEP 3 Resettlement Support Center: A Resettlement Support Center (RSC), contracted by the U.S. Department of State, compiles the refugee’s personal data and background information for the security clearance process and to present to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for an in-person interview. —STEP 4 Security Clearance Process: With information collected by the RSC, a number of security checks are conducted. The State Department runs the names of all refugees referred to the United States for resettlement through a standard CLASS (Consular Lookout and Support System) name check. In addition, enhanced interagency security checks were phased in beginning in 2008 and applied to all refugee applicants by 2010. —STEP 5 Security Clearance Process: Certain refugees undergo an additional security review called a Security Advisory Opinion (SAO). These cases require a positive SAO clearance from a number of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies in order to continue the resettlement process. When required, this step runs concurrently with Step 4. U. S. COMMITTEE FOR REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS 2231 Crystal Drive, Suite 350 • Arlington,VA 22202 • Tel: (703)310.1130 • Fax: (703)769.4241 www.refugees.org —STEP 6 Security Clearance Process: Refugees who meet the minimum age requirement have their fingerprints and photograph taken by a trained U.S. government employee, usually on the same day as their DHS interview. The fingerprints are then checked against various U.S. government databases and information on any matches is reviewed by DHS. —STEP 7 In-person Interview: All refugee applicants are interviewed by an officer from DHS’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). A trained officer will conducts a detailed, face-to- face interview with each refugee applicant being considered for resettlement. Based on the information in the refugee’s case file and on the interview, the DHS officer will determine if the individual qualifies as a refugee and is admissible under U.S. law. —STEP 8 DHS Approval: If the USCIS officer finds that the individual qualifies as a refugee and meets other U.S. admission criteria, the officer will conditionally approve the refugee’s application for resettlement and submit it to the U.S. Department of State for final processing. Conditional approvals become final once the results of all security checks (Steps 4, 5, and 6) have been received and cleared. —STEP 9 Medical Screening: All refugee applicants approved for resettlement in the U.S. are required to undergo a medical screening conducted by the International Organization for Migration or a physician designated by the U.S. Embassy. —STEP 10 Matching Refugees with a Sponsor Agency: Every refugee is assigned to a Resettlement Agency in the U.S., such as the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI). The resettlement agency will place refugees with a local partner agency or field office that will assist them upon their arrival in the U.S. —STEP 11 Cultural Orientation: In addition, refugees approved for resettlement are offered cultural orientation while waiting for final processing, to prepare them for their journey to the U.S. and initial resettlement. —STEP 12 Admission to the United States: Upon arrival at one of five U.S. airports designated as ports of entry for refugee admissions, a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer will review the refugee’s documentation and conduct additional security checks to ensure that the arriving refugee is the same person who was screened and approved for admission to the U.S. U. S . COMMITTEE FOR REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS 2231 Crystal Drive, Suite 350 • Arlington,VA 22202 • Tel: (703)310.1130 • Fax: (703)769.4241 www.refugees.org Next Meeting: April 27th, 2016 from 9:00AM – 10:30AM at Nashua City Hall - Auditorium