The United States has a long tradition of offering refuge to those fleeing persecution and war. In 2015, the International Rescue Committee helped resettle nearly 10,000 newly arrived refugees and provided services to promote self-reliance and integration to over 36,000 refugees, asylees, victims of human trafficking and other immigrants. IRC staff members and volunteers believe that refugees’ greatest resources are themselves. We help them translate their skills, interests and past experiences into assets that are valuable in their new communities.
How we help
The IRC has offices across the United States that support newly arrived refugees by providing immediate aid, including food and shelter.
Through a network of staff members and volunteers we provide access to the tools of self-reliance: cultural orientation, housing, job placement and employment skills, clothing, medical attention, education, English-language classes and community orientation. Each resettlement office serves as a free, one-stop center for refugees’ needs during their pivotal first months in the U.S.
Through community gardening, nutrition education and small-business farming, the IRC's New Roots program is giving hundreds of refugee farmers the tools and training they need to grow healthy and affordable food and become self-sufficient.
In addition to integrating refugees into the U.S., the IRC’s refugee resettlement network provides comprehensive immigration services to assist refugees and asylees on their path to becoming permanent residents or U.S. citizens.
The IRC also provides specialized services to victims of human trafficking in the U.S. – men, women and children who have been forced or coerced into modern-day slavery. More information about all of these activities can be found on the IRC’s US Program Offerings page.
Resettlement support center
Through our Resettlement Support Center in Thailand, the IRC assists thousands of refugees who departed from camps and cities in East Asia to enter the United States and build new lives with help from the IRC and sister resettlement agencies.
The Resettlement Support Center primarily assists refugees in Thailand but also assists asylum seekers in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and other countries in Southeast Asia. The activities of the center are funded by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration.