On the first day of the new U.S. fiscal year—October 1, 2025—a dramatic shift in American refugee policy is taking shape. President Donald Trump’s administration is weighing a drastic reduction in the number of refugees allowed into the United States, with the admissions cap potentially slashed to just 7,500, down from the 125,000 target set by the Biden administration last year. Even more striking, according to multiple sources cited by the Associated Press, the majority of these coveted spots may be reserved for white South Africans, specifically the Afrikaner minority.
This potential policy, which has not yet been finalized or formally communicated to Congress as required by law, marks a significant departure from decades of bipartisan support for a globally inclusive refugee program. Advocates and critics alike are sounding alarms about what they see as a fundamental change in the spirit and practice of U.S. humanitarian efforts.
“This would be a monumental shift in U.S. refugee policy, not just in terms of reducing admissions, but also in terms of disproportionately privileging one group over every other,” Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of the resettlement organization Global Refuge, told the Associated Press. “Our concern is that this could turn what has long been a globally responsive humanitarian system into one that overwhelmingly favors a single group.”
The Trump administration’s rationale for this move centers on claims that Afrikaners—descendants of Dutch and French settlers who arrived in South Africa in the 17th century—are facing discrimination, race-based violence, and land expropriation under South Africa’s Black-led government. These assertions have been echoed by conservative commentators in the United States and high-profile figures like South African-born billionaire Elon Musk, who has accused the South African government of being racist against whites.
The South African government, however, vehemently denies these claims. Officials have described the allegations as “completely false” and the result of misinformation, insisting that farm attacks represent only a tiny fraction of South Africa’s broader violent crime problem, which affects all citizens. They also argue that the new land expropriation law is intended to redistribute unused land to poor Black South Africans, not to target whites. “These claims are completely false,” a government spokesperson said, according to AP. “All South Africans are impacted by crime, and our policies are aimed at correcting historical injustices, not persecuting minorities.”
The policy debate reached a fever pitch during a tense Oval Office meeting in May between President Trump and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, where Trump confronted Ramaphosa with what South African officials called baseless claims of widespread violence against white farmers.
In February 2025, President Trump issued an executive order accusing South Africa of “egregious actions” and human rights violations against Afrikaners, instructing U.S. agencies to prioritize their humanitarian relief and relocation. The administration subsequently announced a new program to fast-track the relocation of Afrikaner farmers, while suspending admissions from other refugee groups around the world. Around 70 white South Africans were relocated to the United States in two groups in May and June 2025, with U.S. officials promising that more would follow.
Yet, the policy has not been without controversy or practical complications. The U.S. Embassy in South Africa reported in September that there was a “sizable volume of submissions” for refugee status, though it did not specify exact numbers. Meanwhile, the refugee program has been extended to other racial minorities in South Africa, including those of Indian or mixed-race heritage, provided they can demonstrate discrimination under existing laws or policies.
For Afrikaners themselves, the picture is complex. Numbering about 2.7 million in a country of 62 million, Afrikaners are represented across South African society—in business, government, sports, and more. Although they were central to the apartheid regime that lasted from 1948 until 1994, most Afrikaners have embraced the country’s multiracial democracy since Nelson Mandela’s historic election. Some Afrikaner lobby groups, which have been critical of the South African government, have actually urged their members to remain in South Africa, despite the opportunities presented by the new U.S. policy.
Back in the United States, the debate over the new refugee cap is playing out against a backdrop of broader immigration crackdowns. The Department of Homeland Security has been conducting immigration raids in major cities and recruiting new officers with a social media campaign aimed at "recapturing our national identity." The Trump administration’s suspension of the refugee program on his first day in office in January 2025 has left some 128,000 refugees who had been approved for resettlement in limbo, according to Mark Hetfield, president of the Jewish refugee resettlement agency HIAS.
“How can a president who claims to stand for religious and American values and who claims to support legal and orderly migration turn his back on so many refugees who followed the rules, while moving white South Africans to the front of the line?” Hetfield asked, reflecting the frustration of many advocates who fear that the new policy could leave thousands of vulnerable refugees in perilous situations abroad.
Lawmakers, particularly Democrats on the House and Senate Judiciary committees, have been pressing the White House for the official notification of the refugee cap, which was due by September 30. In a letter last week, Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, and other top Democrats accused the Trump administration of being “in open defiance of the law.” They warned that refugees who have already passed rigorous vetting requirements are being left to languish while “carving out exceptions for white South African farmers, allowing Afrikaners to skip the line.”
Adding to the uncertainty, a federal government shutdown that began on October 1 has meant that, for now, no refugees are being admitted at all. Administration officials have said that the admissions cap will not be finalized until the government reopens and Congress is consulted, as required by law. One senior official noted that even 7,500 admissions would be “significantly more” than had been allowed since Trump took office for the second time in January.
As the debate continues, the fate of thousands of would-be refugees—from South Africa and around the world—hangs in the balance. The outcome will not only shape the lives of those seeking a new start in America, but also set the tone for the nation’s approach to humanitarian relief and global responsibility in the years to come.
For now, the world watches as the U.S. weighs a decision that could redefine both its refugee program and its moral standing on the international stage.
