Refugee Resettlement
Who is a Refugee?
The 1951 Refugee Convention establishing the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spells out that a refugee is someone who "owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country."

According to the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), under U.S. law, a refugee is an individual who:

	Is located outside of the United States
	Is of special humanitarian concern to the United States,
	Demonstrates that they were persecuted or fear persecution due to race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group,
	Is not firmly resettled in another country, and
	Is admissible to the United States.

US Refugee Resettlement Program
Institute Resettlement Program
Refugee Act of 1980