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The United States may increase the current annual quota of refugees permitted into the country, which is now at a historic low of 7,500 people, a State Department official said Thursday.
President Donald Trump reduced the number of refugees for the fiscal year 2026 from 125,000 the previous year. Most of the recently admitted refugees are white farmers from South Africa whose applications were approved on claims they risk death and face discrimination – a claim refuted by Pretoria.
Andrew Veprek, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, said the decision ultimately rests with the president.
“Not to get ahead of the White House, the President, on this, it’s ultimately his decision but I think definitely we are looking to think about it the next fiscal year, but also before that,” Veprek said.
“We’re looking at the pace of resettlement right now and thinking about how it is going.”
Veprek would not say whether the quota could be expanded to include other nationalities or ethnic groups.
Speaking at an event hosted by the Center for Immigration Studies, Veprek noted that authority over refugee resettlement was transferred to the Department of Health and Human Services in January.
Immigration enforcement remains a central issue for Trump. His administration has paired raids and deportations of undocumented immigrants with tighter restrictions on legal migration and skilled worker visas.
Several of the new restrictions face legal challenges. The Supreme Court is expected to issue rulings on multiple cases, including the ban on asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border and the Temporary Protected Status program for Haitians and Syrians.
Veprek said existing policies will stay in place, and discussions continue with other countries about taking back their deported nationals.
“Venezuela, for example — Venezuelans want to go home. The government of Venezuela wants Venezuelans to go home, and we want them to go,” he said.
