Biden administration falls 80% short of 2022 refugee admissions target

The U.S. allowed more than 25,000 refugees into the country in fiscal year 2022, using only 20% of 125,000 refugee spots allocated by the Biden administration, which continued to struggle to rebuild a resettlement system gutted by Trump-era limits and the COVID-19 pandemic, a top State Department official told CBS News.

Deputy Assistant State Department Secretary Sarah Cross said in an interview with CBS News that in fiscal year 2022, which ended on Sept. 30, the U.S. received approximately 25,400 refugees under the Refugee Admissions Program, which resettles the most vulnerable immigrants displaced by war and violence across the globe. Cross noted the number is a preliminary figure that could be updated.

While the annual refugee ceiling is an aspirational target that does not require the U.S. to receive a minimum number of refugees, the Biden administration's move to dramatically increase the cap symbolized a seismic departure from former President Donald Trump's decision to slash refugee spots to record lows.