US President Donald Trump has set the refugee admissions ceiling for fiscal year 2026 at a record-low 7,500, with a focus on white Afrikaner South Africans. The move, announced in a White House document, prioritizes those claiming racial persecution, amid denials from the South African government. Critics, including Democratic lawmakers, have called the cap illegal and morally indefensible.
On October 30, 2025, a White House document revealed that President Donald Trump determined the US refugee admissions for fiscal year 2026 at 7,500—the lowest cap on record. This annual refugee determination, dated September 30, directs admissions largely toward South Africans from the white Afrikaner ethnic minority. Trump has claimed these Afrikaners face racial persecution in the Black-majority country, allegations denied by the South African government.
Upon taking office in January 2025, Trump paused all US refugee admissions, allowing restarts only if deemed in the nation's best interests. Weeks later, his administration initiated efforts to admit Afrikaners, drawing criticism from refugee advocates. By early September, only 138 South Africans had entered the US under this policy, according to Reuters.
The determination also opens consideration for “other victims of illegal or unjust discrimination in their respective homelands.” An internal April document, not part of the public plan, suggested prioritizing Europeans targeted for views opposing mass migration or supporting populist parties.
US law mandates congressional consultation before setting refugee levels, but Democratic lawmakers stated no such meeting occurred on September 30. In a Thursday statement, Representative Jamie Raskin, Senator Dick Durbin, and others declared: “This bizarre presidential determination is not only morally indefensible, it is illegal and invalid.” A senior administration official attributed the delay to the government shutdown starting October 1, noting no admissions until consultation happens.
This cap sharply contrasts with the 100,000 refugees admitted under President Joe Biden in fiscal 2024. During the September United Nations General Assembly, Trump officials urged global rollbacks on asylum protections. Additionally, refugee program oversight will shift from the State Department to the Department of Health and Human Services.
Gideon Maltz, CEO of Tent Partnership for Refugees, stated that refugees address labor shortages and that the program “has been extraordinarily good for America.” He added, “Dismantling it today is not putting America first.”