WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s administration is preparing to set a refugee admissions cap at 7,500 people this fiscal year, a record low that prioritizes white South Africans of Afrikaner ethnicity, three people familiar with the matter said.
If finalized, the planned cap would be a steep drop from the 125,000 put in place last year under former President Joe Biden and reflect Trump’s restrictive view of immigration and humanitarian protection.
Trump, a Republican, slashed refugee levels during his 2017-2021 presidency as part of a broad crackdown on both legal and illegal immigration. After returning to office in January 2025, he froze refugee admissions, saying they could only resume if it was determined to be in the interest of the US
Weeks later, Trump issued an executive order prioritizing refugee entries from South Africa’s Dutch-descended Afrikaner minority, saying the white minority group suffered racial discrimination and violence in majority-Black South Africa. South Africa’s government has rejected those claims.
The first group of 59 South Africans arrived in May, reaching a total of 138 by early September, Reuters reported previously.
The White House, State Department and Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the planned 7,500-person refugee ceiling in fiscal year 2026, which began on Wednesday. The New York Times first reported the plans.
John Slocum, executive director of Refugee Council USA, urged other elected officials to push Trump to bring in more refugees, saying in a statement that such a low limit would be “jeopardizing people’s lives, separating families, and undermining our national security and economic growth.”
Trump officials had previously discussed annual refugee admissions ranging from 40,000 to 60,000, Reuters reported in recent months.
At a side event at the United Nations General Assembly last week, top Trump administration officials urged other nations to join a global campaign to roll back asylum protections, a major shift that would seek to reshape the post-World War Two framework around humanitarian migration.