US Admits 4,499 Refugees Since October, Almost All From South Africa

US government data shows a sharp shift in refugee admissions under President Donald Trump, with nearly all people resettled in the country since October coming from South Africa.

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Figures from the Refugee Processing Center indicate that 4,499 refugees were admitted to the United States during this period. All but three were South African, with the remaining individuals arriving from Afghanistan.

The numbers reflect a significant change from the final full fiscal year of the administration of former President Joe Biden. During that period, which began in October 2023, about 125,000 refugees from 85 countries were resettled in the United States.

Policy changes introduced after Trump returned to the White House effectively halted most refugee admissions, including applications from people fleeing active war zones. However, the administration created an exception allowing Afrikaners — a white minority group in South Africa — to apply for resettlement.

Washington said the changes were aimed at strengthening national security and public safety.

Priority for Afrikaner Applicants

Under the revised policy, priority was given to Afrikaner South Africans and others described by the administration as victims of “illegal or unjust discrimination” in their home countries.

Trump has repeatedly argued that white farmers in South Africa face persecution, an allegation strongly rejected by the South African government.

Officials in Pretoria say claims of a campaign targeting white farmers or a so-called “white genocide” are unsupported by credible evidence.

The policy shift has contributed to worsening diplomatic relations between Washington and Pretoria.

Diplomatic Tensions

Relations deteriorated further last year when South Africa’s ambassador to the United States, Ebrahim Rasool, was expelled after accusing Trump of encouraging supremacist narratives and promoting the idea of white victimhood.

Tensions also surfaced publicly during a meeting in the Oval Office in May between Trump and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. During the encounter, Trump reiterated claims that white farmers were being targeted and suggested they faced “genocide”.

Ramaphosa rejected the allegation. He was supported by John Steenhuisen, leader of South Africa’s Democratic Alliance and a member of the country’s governing coalition.

Steenhuisen told Trump that most South African farmers wanted to remain in the country and continue building their livelihoods there.

Criticism of Resettlement Programme

The South African government criticised Washington’s decision to prioritise Afrikaner refugees. Officials said the claims used to justify the programme had been widely discredited and lacked reliable supporting evidence.

Criticism has also come from within the Afrikaner community itself. An open letter signed by prominent Afrikaners — including academics, business leaders and descendants of figures from the apartheid era — rejected the narrative that white South Africans face systematic persecution.

Some signatories described the relocation initiative as discriminatory.

The first group of Afrikaner refugees, numbering 68 people, arrived in the United States in May last year. Admissions rose sharply early this year, with 2,848 South Africans resettled in February and March alone.

According to the data, refugees have been dispersed across several US states. The largest concentration, 543 people, is in Texas.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 10 April 2026