الوسم: بيان السياسة

Filing Comes Amid New Unlawful Refugee Detention Policy

Boston, Mass. — Six refugees, Jewish Family Service of Western Massachusetts, and the International Institute of New England (IINE), represented by Democracy Forward and the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), filed a federal lawsuit today challenging a sweeping new U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “Refugee Detention Policy” that directs the warrantless arrest and mandatory – and potentially indefinite – detention of lawfully admitted refugees who have lived in the United States for at least one year and have not yet adjusted their resident status or do not have a pending application for permanent resident or “green card” status – even though the government has no reason to believe that they are deportable or have committed any criminal violation.

This unlawful policy is part of “Operation Post-Admission Refugee Reinvestigation and Integrity Strengthening” (Operation PARRIS), in which DHS is targeting refugees. Federal law requires refugees to apply for permanent residency (a green card) after at least one year of physical presence in the U.S., but it has never authorized arrest or detention to compel submission of an application. The new policy targets not only those who need time to complete their applications and medical exams, but also up to 100,000 refugees who have pending applications, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has refused to adjudicate them, leaving more than 100,000 in limbo.

Refugee status does not expire after one year, but the Trump-Vance administration now claims that on the 366th day after arrival, refugees who have not yet received their green cards must be arrested and detained indefinitely. By freezing applications and then using the agency’s delay as a basis for detention, the Trump-Vance administration is creating a trap in which refugees are penalized for the government’s own failure to act.

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, challenges two recent agency memoranda that reverse more than 45 years of settled practice and reinterpret federal immigration law to subject refugees to detention. Under the new policy, refugees who were lawfully admitted after extensive vetting, and who remain in lawful status, must be arrested without a warrant and detained even if they have not been charged with any crime or immigration violation. The policy reverses decades of settled agency guidance, which made clear that a refugee’s lack of adjustment to permanent resident status is not a lawful basis for arrest or detention.

Plaintiffs have also filed a motion for a preliminary injunction and stay, asking the court to stop the policy under the Administrative Procedure Act to prevent irreparable harm to refugees while the case proceeds.

“I fled death threats and waited nearly a decade to resettle as a refugee in the United States,” said plaintiff Mona C. “My family has worked hard to restart our lives, but now I am worried that ICE might arrest me. Who will take care of my children if I am arrested and detained? We came to the U.S. to live in peace and safety, not to relive the horrors of our past.”

“Litigation is not our standard method of advocacy, but when the federal government directly targets refugees—resilient, hardworking community members who escaped persecution and were promised safety by our nation—we must stand up and speak out,” said Jeff Thielman, International Institute of New England President and CEO. “IINE is committed to fighting for the rights and protection of refugees, and we know our commitment is strengthened by a majority of Americans across the country, who recognize, too, the importance of welcome and humanity.”

Rabbi James Greene, CEO of Jewish Family Service of Western Massachusetts, said, “Refugee families often waited years for resettlement and were promised safety and an opportunity to build their lives here in the United States. With this policy, DHS is threatening them with arrest and detention for an indefinite period without any cause, crime, or reason. The Bible’s most often repeated commandment is to welcome the stranger – it is our central value and a pillar of Jewish tradition. To allow this policy to come into effect would be a rejection of the values that we most hold dear. We stand with our clients, and with all refugees who would be harmed by this horrific policy.”

“For more than four decades, the United States has honored its commitment to refugees by providing safety, stability, and a lawful path forward. This policy betrays that promise – it attempts to transform a routine administrative process into a tool for mass arrest and detention of people who followed the law, were thoroughly vetted, and were admitted into our country to rebuild their lives here,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “The Constitution does not permit the government to jail people without statutory authority or due process. We are asking the court to stop this unlawful policy immediately, and will continue to use every legal tool available to protect people from the cruelty of this administration.”

“The Trump administration is clear it intends to take its terror campaign against refugees in Minnesota national,” said Ghita Schwarz, Senior Director of U.S. Litigation at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP). “Refugees were brought to this country by the U.S. government to restart their lives in safety and are now being threatened with mandatory arrest and detention. All Americans should be concerned about this lawless push to imprison people who have done nothing wrong.”

Plaintiffs argue that the policy violates the Immigration and Nationality Act, was issued without required notice-and-comment rulemaking, is arbitrary and capricious, and violates both the Fourth Amendment, which protects people, including noncitizens physically present in the U.S., from unreasonable searches and seizures, and the Fifth Amendment, which protects people from deprivation of liberty without due process of law.

The complaint also describes how the policy has already led to arrests and detentions of refugees, separating families and disrupting communities. Plaintiffs warn that without immediate court intervention, lawfully admitted refugees remain at risk of arrest and prolonged detention despite having done nothing wrong.

The filings explain that the statute governing refugee adjustment of status does not authorize detention and that the government’s interpretation would upend decades of consistent practice. The lawsuit seeks to vacate the challenged memoranda, halt their enforcement nationwide, and restore longstanding legal protections for refugees.

The case is Jean A. et al v. Noem, and the legal team at Democracy Forward includes Kali Schellenberg, Erez Reuveni, Jennie Kneedler, Ryan Cooper, Steven Bressler, and Robin Thurston.

IINE is committed to fighting for the rights and safety of refugees, but we need your support. Please consider making a donation today.

The latest directive issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) marks an alarming escalation in the federal government’s attack on refugee families, who have already endured immense trauma due to persecution in their homelands and who have undergone the most exhaustive security vetting of any immigrant group admitted to the United States.  

The federal administration has authorized ICE to arrest and detain any refugee who has been in the United States for one year and has not yet adjusted to lawful permanent resident (LPR) status. This requirement is being put in place even though refugees cannot obtain LPR status until one year after their arrival in the country, and their applications are frequently subject to delays. The newly disclosed memo mandates that all refugees must “return” to DHS custody at the one-year mark for inspection and rescreening and warns that if a refugee does not voluntarily appear, ICE is required to pursue arrest and detention. The memo further asserts that a refugee’s failure to obtain LPR status is itself a basis for arrest and authorizes DHS to detain refugees for a vaguely defined “reasonable length of time.”  

This directive builds on ICE’s recent actions in Minnesota under Operation PARRIS, which has led to thousands of refugees being seized without cause, separated from their families, and detained in inhumane conditions. Our position today is the same as when Operation PARRIS first came to light: Forcing heavily vetted refugees—already granted safety and a chance to rebuild their lives in the U.S.—to undergo politically motivated reinterviews is unnecessary, destabilizing, and deeply immoral.  

Refugees who have come to see the U.S. as home, and who have become our neighbors, coworkers, classmates, and friends, should not live in fear that missing paperwork, delayed adjudications, or government backlogs will result in indiscriminate and indefinite detention. The U.S. has long promised refuge to families fleeing violence and persecution. Now, that promise is being systematically dismantled. 

We call on the courts to reject this unlawful policy and on Congress to demand immediate oversight. We will continue to stand with refugee families and do everything we can to help protect their safety and rights. We thank our community for joining us in this critical fight.  

Learn more about how to get involved and support our work today. 

UPDATE AS OF 10/31/25 

The Presidential Determination on refugee admissions for Fiscal Year 2026 has been set at 7,500 people, the lowest ceiling in the history of a program that has enjoyed broad bipartisan support for more than four decades. This number is only a fraction of past refugee admission ceilings and was set without consulting with Congress, as required by law. It also fails to meet the urgency of today’s global displacement crisis. At the end of 2024, there was an estimated 123.2 million forcibly displaced people worldwide—families and individuals who have lost their homes and safety due to persecution, conflict, and natural disasters. The United States has been the world leader in receiving refugees, and throughout the past four decades Americans have witnessed refugees fill needed jobs, start businesses, raise families, run for office, and add tremendous value to American society.  

We implore the administration to open refugee admissions to people fleeing crises in Sudan, Myanmar, Venezuela, and other nations, including Afghanistan. Thousands of Afghan war allies, who supported our government and troops, are waiting to come here, and our nation owes them the opportunity to do so. 

As we respond to this disappointing determination, IINE and many of our peer organizations are navigating the loss of SNAP eligibility for refugees and immigrants with legal statuses under the federal policy changes enacted by the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” Instead of further destabilizing vulnerable populations, the United States should seek to build systems that are fair, humane, and representative of the values our nation has held dear since its founding.  

Six days into the new federal fiscal year, the administration has not yet consulted with Congress or released the annual Presidential Determination for refugee admissions, a requirement of the Refugee Act of 1980. This delay coincides with reports that the administration is preparing to significantly alter U.S. refugee policy.  

We are hearing that the administration intends to cut refugee admissions to 7,500 people—the lowest ceiling in U.S. history, a small fraction of the 120,000 goal set by the UN High Commision for Refugees for the international community, and a mere 6% of our country’s 2025 target of 125,000 refugees. In addition, during remarks delivered at a panel entitled “The Global Refugee and Asylum System: What Went Wrong and How to Fix It,” the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State outlined the administration’s intent to “reframe” refugee status so it becomes “temporary, not permanent,” and that “the understanding is you should go back to your country.”   

These proposed changes to federal policy fundamentally misrepresent what it means to be a refugee and fail to advance humane, effective solutions to displacement. Federal law and treaties signed by the U.S. government define refugees as individuals who are unable or unwilling to return to their home countries because of a well-founded fear of being persecuted based on race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. The U.S. has a rigorous, multi-year vetting process to confirm this status. The goal of resettlement is to help these individuals find a durable solution and rebuild their lives peacefully and without the risk of further displacement.  

If we abandon our identity as the world’s leader in refugee resettlement, we will put real lives at risk. When the federal administration suspended the refugee program on January 20th, it left more than a hundred thousand refugees stranded overseas—despite having completed extensive vetting and already being approved for resettlement. Today, many are still waiting in refugee camps in dire conditions, desperate for the chance to rebuild their lives in safety, and in many cases, reunite with family members they have not seen for years. 

Through decades of evidence-based practice, refugee resettlement agencies like IINE have effectively partnered with federal and local governments, employers, schools, healthcare providers, and community members. This collaborative effort helps new arrivals integrate and thrive. The initial, modest investments made by public and private partners more than pay off: refugees join the U.S. workforce, contribute to the local, state, and federal tax base, purchase homes, and start businesses at a higher rate that U.S.-born residents. They shape our culture, traditions, and society in countless ways.  

Ensuring our nation continues to welcome families and individuals in need of safety is both the smart and the right thing to do. The United States has been a haven for the persecuted since the founding of the nation, and for decades, the U.S. refugee resettlement system has functioned effectively with wide bipartisan support. Welcoming refugees reflects the best of our nation’s core values – equal treatment, non-discrimination, and human dignity – making it as vital to our national identity as it is to the refugees who find a home here.