2.2. Programme administration and security screening
USRAP involves multiple arms of the federal Government, States, localities,
and NGOs. PRM contracts with overseas processing entities (OPEs) to screen
persons referred to the programme, and to prepare their cases for consideration
by USCIS. OPEs collect biographic information that includes name, aliases, date
of birth, family tree, education, the basis of the persecution claim, and the date
and place from which the refugee departed. This information assists USCIS in its
subsequent review of the refugee claim. OPEs also collect information to assist
resettlement agencies in placement decisions, including information on medical
conditions, languages spoken, and job history.
USCIS reviews applications, coordinates background checks (which FBI,
CIA, and DOS conduct), interviews applicants, and determines eligibility and admissibility.
DOS runs names, aliases, places of birth, nationalities, and other data
through its Consular Lookout and Support System (CLASS) name check system. In
addition, certain refugees receive Security Advisory Opinion (SAO) reviews based
on classified criteria, including nationality, gender, and age. According to DOS
officials, these criteria have not changed since shortly after 9/11. Persons in unclassified
categories established by DOS’s Bureau of Consular Affairs based on
US foreign policy interests and security concerns are also subject to SAOscreening.
SAO delays have been an issue of particular concern to stakeholders in the
refugee resettlement process. The SAO review consists of running the applicant’s
name and other data through multiple intelligence and law enforcement databases.
While most cases clear within 45 to 60 days, it can take months to receive
responses from the relevant agencies in particular cases. More significant delays
result when the name of an intending refugee resembles or matches a name in a
government database. When a “hit” occurs, DOS or another federal agency
must determine that the intending refugee is not the person in the database.
This labour-intensive process can take anywhere from six months to more
22 J. Esbenshade, An Assessment of DNA Testing for African Refugees, Washington, D.C., Immigration Policy
Center, 2010, 5 and 11, available at:
www.immigrationpolicy.org/special-reports/assessment-dna-testingafrican-refugees (last visited 6 Jul. 2011). The DNA testing did not seek to establish family ties between
the US anchor family member and the primary applicant for admission overseas. Rather, it tested the
relationship between the overseas applicants and derivative relatives on their applications. The test counted
all relationships in a family unit as fraudulent if even one member did not attend the interview, refused to be
tested, or “failed” the test.
6 Donald Kerwin j Faltering US Refugee Protection System
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than one year. As a result, many intending refugees and their families languish in
dangerous situations for extended periods.23 In 2009, the US Government
Accountability Office (GAO) reported that 53 per cent of the Iraqi refugees
who had been approved for resettlement were awaiting SAO clearance.24
According to PRM officials, roughly 18,000 refugees, mostly from Africa and
the Middle-East, were awaiting SAO clearance as of December 2010.
The SAO review severely affects persons with common names who are from
countries (such as Somalia) that have a poor system of birth records. In addition,
a “hit” in one case can delay the admission of family members and others
who are linked or cross-referenced to the applicant. Iraqi refugees do not have
to receive SAO clearance prior to the USCIS refugee interview; all others subject
to SAO procedures must be pre-cleared.25
In late February 2011, DHS initiated an additional security screening process,
the inter-agency check (IAC). While only certain refugees are subject to the
SAO, all refugees must undergo the IAC, prior to both the refugee interview and
departure to the US.26 The new procedure has led to significant decreases in
admissions in FY 2011. In FY 2009 and FY 2010, the US admitted (respectively)
74,602 and 73,293 refugees.27 In FY 2011, refugee admissions fell to 56,425,
despite an admissions ceiling of 80,000.28 Complicating the process, IAC
checks, SAO checks, medical examinations, and interviews have distinct expiration
dates and must be repeated after set periods of time. As a result, delays
caused by the IAC have exposed refugees to additional cycles of delay. As of early
July 2011, an estimated 69,000 approved refugees were awaiting departure to the
US, including more than 20,000 cases on hold due to SAO reviews and a
significant portion of the remaining cases on hold due to the IAC process.
In the past, refugee interviews were conducted by USCIS staff detailed from
other programmes and from the agency’s overseas district offices. In 2005,
USCIS created a corps of officers dedicated exclusively to this work. Like the
23 Human Rights First (HRF), Living in Limbo: Iraqi Refugees and US Resettlement, Report, New York, HRF,
2010, 21–26, available at:
www.humanrightsfirst.org/wp-content/uploads/Living-in-Limbo-final.pdf(last visited 6 Jul. 2011).
24 GAO, Iraqi Refugee Assistance: Improvements Needed in Measuring Progress, Assessing Needs, Tracking Funds,
and Developing an International Strategic Plan, Report to Congressional Committees, Washington, D.C.,
GAO, 2009, 33, available at:
www.gao.gov/new.items/d09120.pdf (last visited 6 Jul. 2011).
25 After being fingerprinted, refugees are also biometrically screened against DHS’s US Visitor and Immigrant
Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) system, as well as the FBI’s Integrated Automated Fingerprint
Identification System (IAFIS).
26 PRM has reported that IAC checks will also be run on all Iraqi refugees admitted to the US between 2007
and the date the new check was instituted overseas.
27 Martin, Refugees and Asylees, 2.
28 Testimony of David M. Robinson, Acting Assistant Secretary, PRM, DOS, before the House Tom Lantos
Human Rights Commission, Hearing to Commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the United Nations
Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 50th Anniversary of the Convention on the
Reduction of Statelessness, 112th Cong., 1st sess., 26 Oct. 2011, available at:
http://www.state/.
gov/g/prm/rls/rmks/2011/176337.htm (last visited 17 Dec. 2011).
Refugee Survey Quarterly 7
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Asylum Corps, which reviews “affirmative” asylum claims, the Refugee Corps
brings special expertise to a complex process and legal regime. The corps also
accommodates a heavy volume of work: in FY 2009, it interviewed 110,000
persons and approved 74,659 cases for admission.29
The International Organization of Migration (IOM) arranges and PRM
supports refugee travel to the US through a loan programme. PRM also funds
non-profit refugee resettlement agencies to provide “reception and placement”
services for refugees in their first 30–90 days in the US.30
ORR coordinates the provision of benefits and services to refugees in the
US.31 As discussed below, it partners with States, national voluntary agencies
(VOLAGs), and local community and faith-based groups to provide services as
diverse as job preparation, training and placement; English laEnglish language instruction;
assistance in employment recertification; and day care.32
2.3.
