Trump caps refugees at 7,500, earmarks most slots for White South Africans

President Trump set a ceiling for the U.S. to accept no more than 7,500 refugees in fiscal 2026 and said most of those slots should go to White Afrikaners from South Africa.

That would be the lowest number since the modern refugee system was established, coming in even below the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, which both still managed to top 11,000 people.

In 2024, the U.S. resettled more than 100,000.

Reeling in the program has long been a goal of Mr. Trump and his immigration advisers, who say the country needs space to adjust to the millions of immigrants who already arrived — many of them without authorization — in recent years.

“The admissions of up to 7,500 refugees to the United States during Fiscal Year 2026 is justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national interest,” Mr. Trump said in a Federal Registry notice.

Refugees are those seeking protection from persecution from outside the country. Those already on U.S. soil who seek protection are considered under asylum, which is a parallel but separate track.

The refugee program has generally had strong bipartisan backing on Capitol Hill, where the desire to provide a safety valve for those fleeing dangerous governments has long been strong.

Mr. Trump’s position challenges that consensus.

The law does not cap the number of asylum grants but does give the president the duty to set a ceiling on how many refugees will be accepted.

The law also requires the administration to consult with Congress before setting a new cap before the start of each fiscal year.

Democrats said that didn’t take place this time.

The fiscal year began Oct. 1, though much of the government has been in a shutdown.

Church World Service, a major refugee and migration group, said this week that no refugees had been resettled since the start of the month.

Part of that is the lingering effects of a refugee pause Mr. Trump announced when he took office in January.

Mr. Trump previously said the U.S. needed to take care of White residents of South Africa who he said face abuses such as property seizures from that nation’s government.

“The secretary of State and the secretary of Homeland Security shall take appropriate steps, consistent with law, to prioritize humanitarian relief, including admission and resettlement through the United States Refugee Admissions Program, for Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination,” Mr. Trump said in an executive order in February.

The focus on South Africa will be a major reversal.

In 2024, the last full year for which there is data, just one South African was admitted as a refugee, and from 2012 to 2024 the grand total was five.

The Democratic Republic of Congo led the way with more than 117,000 refugees over that period, and Burma was second with nearly 108,000 refugees.

The 7,500 cap had been rumored for weeks.

Refugee groups said it will leave many deserving migrants without an avenue of escape from persecution.

And they complained that those who do make it to the U.S. won’t get as much settlement assistance from American taxpayers as in the past.

“Refugees are ready to contribute from Day One, but they can’t be expected to thrive on empty stomachs and empty promises,” said Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president of Global Refuge.