Presidential Determination Raises FY2026 Refugee Ceiling to 17,500 for Afrikaners from South Africa
Published May 27, 2026Effective May 21, 2026
Presidential Determination No. 2026-14, signed May 21, 2026, raises the Fiscal Year 2026 refugee admissions ceiling from 7,500 to 17,500 to admit Afrikaners from South Africa. The increase responds to what the determination calls an emergency refugee situation involving racially motivated violence in South Africa. The determination was published in the Federal Register on May 27, 2026.
Key points
- The Fiscal Year 2026 refugee admissions ceiling is raised from 7,500, set under PD 2025-13, to 17,500.
- The additional 10,000 admissions are allocated to Afrikaners from South Africa, consistent with Executive Order 14204.
- The President cites increased incitement of racially motivated violence by the South African government and political leaders, and disruptions to U.S. Refugee Admissions Program operations in South Africa, as the basis for the emergency determination.
- Admissions remain subject to Executive Order 14161, requiring the most stringent identity verification for refugees, and Executive Order 14163, which limits refugee entry to cases the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security jointly determine are in the national interest.
- Afrikaners from South Africa processed under Executive Order 14204 may be considered refugees for admission while still in South Africa, their country of nationality or habitual residence.
- The determination was signed May 21, 2026, and published in the Federal Register on May 27, 2026.
Who is affected
Afrikaners from South Africa seeking refugee resettlement in the United States, and refugee resettlement agencies involved in processing their cases.
What to do
The source does not specify application procedures; affected individuals should follow further guidance from the Department of State and the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program.
Full text
The complete official text was archived on this site on 2026-10-12. It stays available here even if the source link changes or is removed.
Presidential Determination No. 2026-14 of May 21, 2026
Emergency Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2026
Memorandum for the Secretary of State[,] the Secretary of Homeland Security[, and] the Secretary of Health and Human Services
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, in accordance with section 207(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)(8 U.S.C. 1157(b)), and after appropriate consultations with the Congress, I have determined that, subsequent to the signing of Presidential Determination 2025-13 of September 30, 2025 (Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2026) (PD 2025-13), an unforeseen emergency refugee situation now exists due to recent increases in the incitement of racially motivated violence on the part of the Government of South Africa and leaders of prominent political parties in South Africa, as well as new disruptions of United States Refugee Admissions Program operations in South Africa. I hereby determine that the admission to the United States of Afrikaners from South Africa in response to this emergency is justified by the grave humanitarian concerns and is otherwise in the national interest, that the admission of these refugees cannot be accomplished under the refugee ceiling of 7,500 for Fiscal Year 2026 as authorized in PD 2025-13, and that an increase in the ceiling to 17,500 is warranted.
The additional admissions shall be allocated among Afrikaners from South Africa, consistent with the directives in Executive Order 14204.
Refugee admissions under this determination, which may reach but not exceed the numerical limit described herein, are in all respects subject to the requirements of other Presidential policies and actions, whether issued prior or subsequent to this determination. Those Presidential policies and actions include, but are not limited to: Executive Order 14161, which mandates that refugees receive the most stringent identification verification of any class of alien seeking admission or entry to the United States; Executive Order 14163, which suspends the entry into the United States of refugees other than when the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security jointly determine that an admission is in the national interest and does not threaten the security and welfare of the United States; Executive Order 14204, which provides for refugee resettlement of Afrikaners from South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination; and Proclamation 10998 which restricts the entry of certain foreign nationals whose admission would be detrimental to the national interest.
In accordance with section 101(a)(42)(B) of the INA (8 U.S.C. 110l(a)(42)(B)), and after appropriate consultation with the Congress, I specify that, for Fiscal Year 2026, Afrikaners from South Africa processed consistent with the directives in Executive Order 14204, may, if otherwise qualified, be considered refugees for the purpose of admission to the United States within their countries of nationality or habitual residence.
( printed page 31646)
The Secretary of State is authorized and directed to publish this determination in the Federal Register.
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, May 21, 2026
[FR Doc. 2026-10598
Filed 5-26-26; 11:15 am]
Billing code 4710-10-P
Original title: Emergency Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2026
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