Refugee & Asylum Policy

Tens of millions of people around the globe have been forcibly displaced by conflict, natural disaster, or persecution, seeking refuge either within or beyond the borders of their country. Humanitarian protection, whether for refugees, asylum seekers, or internally displaced persons (IDPs), represents a key policy area for many major immigrant-receiving countries as well as nations bordering locations where war, political upheaval, or natural disaster have disrupted daily life. The research offered here relates to the law and practice of protecting refugees and IDPs in areas of conflict as well as in industrialized nations, with a focus on secure solutions and effective institutional arrangements for comprehensive protection.

Recent Activity

Multimedia November 30, 2023 The Importance of Community Consultations in the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Network	Articles December 6, 2023 Often Shut Out of the Financial System, Refugees and Other Migrants Face Economic Integration Challenges By Ting Zhang
Reports November 2023 The Unmet Potential of Community Consultations in U.S. Refugee Resettlement By Lillie Hinkle	Multimedia November 14, 2023 Engaging Local Voices: Letting Cities Inform National Refugee Resettlement Goals
Multimedia November 15, 2023 A Passport to Opportunity: The Importance of Refugee Access to Travel Documents	Reports November 2023 Migration and Displacement in Secondary Cities: Insights from Côte d’Ivoire and Uganda By Samuel Davidoff-Gore and Camille Le Coz
Articles November 16, 2023 Climate Migration 101: An Explainer By Lawrence Huang	Reports November 2023 Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area By Valerie Lacarte, Michael Fix and Jeanne Batalova

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Reports May 2023 Displaced Ukrainians in European Labor Markets: Leveraging Innovations for More Inclusive Integration By Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Kate Hooper	Reports April 2023 A Path to Meeting the Medical and Mental Health Needs of Unaccompanied Children in U.S. Communities By Jonathan Beier and Karla Fredricks
Reports March 2023 Migration, Integration, and Diaspora Engagement in the Caribbean: A Policy Review By Valerie Lacarte, Jordi Amaral, Diego Chaves-González, Ana María Sáiz and Jeremy Harris	Reports February 2023 External Processing: A Tool to Expand Protection or Further Restrict Territorial Asylum? By Pauline Endres de Oliveira and Nikolas Feith Tan
Policy Briefs December 2022 Four Strategies to Improve Community Services for Unaccompanied Children in the United States By Jonathan Beier, Lauren Farwell, Rhonda Fleischer and Essey Workie	Reports October 2022 Rebooting the Asylum System? The Role of Digital Tools in International Protection By Hanne Beirens
Reports July 2022 The Missing Link: Connecting Eligible Asylees and Asylum Seekers with Benefits and Services By Essey Workie, Lillie Hinkle and Stephanie Heredia	Policy Briefs May 2022 Vías humanitarias para personas centroamericanas: Evaluando oportunidades para el futuro By Susan Fratzke and Andrea Tanco

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New York City Mayor Eric Adams meeting with asylum seekers.

Policy Beat

September 27, 2023

New York and Other U.S. Cities Struggle with High Costs of Migrant Arrivals

U.S. cities have spent billions of dollars to provide shelter, health care, and other resources to migrants recently arrived from the U.S.-Mexico border. The exceptional costs, which the New York mayor has described as existential, are due to a unique combination of factors, this article explains, including the large numbers of migrants arriving without local connections and long waits for work permits.

Calle Ocho en el barrio de la Pequeña Habana de Miami.

Spotlight

September 21, 2023

Inmigrantes cubanos en los Estados Unidos

Los cubanos constituyen el mayor grupo de inmigrantes caribeños en Estados Unidos. La población está creciendo, ya que en los últimos años se ha producido la mayor oleada de emigración de la historia moderna de Cuba. Este artículo ofrece estadísticas clave sobre los 1.3 millones de inmigrantes cubanos en Estados Unidos.

Migrants in the Darien Gap village of Canaan Membrillo, Panama.

Feature

September 20, 2023

How the Treacherous Darien Gap Became a Migration Crossroads of the Americas

Passage through the Darien Gap has transformed migration across the Americas. Hundreds of thousands of people have taken the incredibly perilous journey across the remote jungle between Colombia and Panama, risking exposure to hazardous terrain, criminal groups, and other dangers. As this article outlines, governments have struggled to respond to the growing movement, expected to top 500,000 crossings in 2023.

A female celebrity being photographed at an event.

Feature

September 14, 2023

Are Celebrity Spokespeople Always Helpful for Refugee Causes?

Famous faces have become a mainstay in promotional campaigns for humanitarian and refugee organizations. Celebrity advocacy can take a variety of forms, including encouraging donations, raising awareness for under-the-radar crises, and lobbying governments for action. This article reviews the trend of star-powered advocacy and examines the factors affecting its success.

A sign for Calle Ocho in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood.

Spotlight

September 7, 2023

Cuban Immigrants in the United States

Cubans comprise the largest Caribbean immigrant group in the United States, and for decades have benefitted from uniquely preferential immigration programs. The population is growing, as recent years have seen the largest wave of emigration in Cuba's modern history. This article offers key statistics about the 1.3 million Cuban immigrants in the United States.

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Video

June 14, 2023

Making Refugee Participation in Protection Community Dialogues Meaningful

In the run-up to the 2023 Global Refugee Forum, this discussion examines efforts at facilitating refugee participation and meaningful engagement in policy conversations at global and other levels.

Expert Q&A, Audio

May 18, 2023

The U.S.-Mexico Border Becomes More High-Tech

MPI President Andrew Selee and two colleagues who joined him at the U.S.-Mexico border to examine increasingly sophisticated U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations discuss the evolution of policies and procedures to address asylum seekers and other migrants arriving at official ports of entry.

Video

April 27, 2023

Toward a Road Map for Digitalization in the EU Humanitarian Protection Space

Digital solutions have been a lifeline for many governments and stakeholders involved in the reception and integration of millions of displaced Ukrainians. While digitalization holds great potential, digital tools also carry risk. This MPI Europe webinar examines the trade-offs, identifies lessons learned, and explores how digital tools might strengthen migration and integration systems.

Video, Audio

April 24, 2023

Strengthening Medical and Mental Health Services for Unaccompanied Children in U.S. Communities

Marking the launch of a report by the American Academy of Pediatrics and MPI, this event examines unaccompanied children’s access to medical and mental health services post-release and offering recommendations for improvements.

Expert Q&A, Audio

April 24, 2023

A Complex Picture: Diversifying Migration Flows & Policies at the U.S.-Mexico Border

How are U.S. border operations and policies evolving at the U.S.-Mexico border to address rising and diversifying flows? And what is driving increasing immigration from across Latin America, the Caribbean, and beyond? MPI President Andrew Selee speaks with two colleagues who traveled from one end of the nearly 2,000-mile boundary to the other, touring U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities and interviewing U.S. and Mexican officials, NGO leaders, and others.

Recent Activity

Commentaries

November 2023

The U.S.-Mexico Border Problem Will Not Be “Solved” Until All Parts of the Border Enforcement System Are Properly Resourced

The $13.6 billion border emergency supplemental spending bill the Biden administration is seeking lays out the elements for resourcing immigration functions to full capacity across the entire border enforcement system. Without resourcing the system across all its parts, including adjudications and management, no administration, present or future, will be able to effectively manage spontaneous border arrivals, this commentary argues.

Articles

November 1, 2023

The World’s Leading Refugee Host, Turkey Has a Complex Migration History

Turkey is home to the world’s largest refugee population, a fact that has been a source of pride, a geopolitical tool, and a logistical challenge. This article shows how the millions of Syrians who have arrived since 2011 comprise just one aspect of Turkey’s rich and complex migration history. The country has been a significant host, a transit point for individuals heading to Europe, and a source of migrant laborers.

Expert Q&A, Audio

October 27, 2023

Is Climate Migration a Homeland Security Threat?

Former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff talks about the security implications of climate change and migration in this episode of the podcast Changing Climate, Changing Migration.

Video

September 18, 2023

20th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference

The 20th annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference, organized by MPI, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., and Georgetown University Law Center, features fresh, thoughtful policy and legal analysis, and discussion of some of the top immigration issues by leading government officials, attorneys, researchers, advocates, and other experts.

Articles

October 25, 2023

Can the Biden Immigration Playbook Be Effective for Managing Arrivals via Sea?

Amid the highest Caribbean maritime migration levels in a generation, the Biden administration is relying on a carrot-and-stick strategy it honed amid record unauthorized migration at the U.S.-Mexico border. The approach, combining limits on asylum, expanded legal pathways, and international enforcement partnerships, could be increasingly important if maritime migration rises, as this article explains.

Policy Briefs

October 2023

Why Matching Matters: Improving Outcomes in Refugee Sponsorship and Complementary Pathways

In community sponsorship and other programs that directly involve communities and individuals in supporting refugees’ arrival and integration, where and with whom refugees are matched matters a great deal. This policy brief explores the ongoing evolution of approaches taken to matching refugees with sponsors or receiving communities, highlighting innovations and opportunities for further improvements.

Expert Q&A, Audio

October 19, 2023

Documenting the Migration Journey: African Kinship Dynamics in Europe

African migrants turn to the strength of kinship-based support systems in pursuit of stability as they settle in a European landscape that is sometimes made precarious by their legal status and shifting policies. This episode discusses use of the kinship networks, including to exchange or broker identity documents between migrants along the migration journey and at destination.

Policy Briefs

October 2023

From Safe Homes to Sponsors: Lessons from the Ukraine Hosting Response for Refugee Sponsorship Programs

As millions of people fled Ukraine and sought safety in countries across Europe after Russia's 2022 invasion, community-led projects emerged to help newcomers find temporary housing in private homes. These hosting initiatives have helped quickly address a pressing housing need, fill gaps in official reception services, and engage communities in welcoming refugees. But they have also posed challenges, as this policy brief discusses.

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