Refugee admissions from all countries to resume with new vetting rules
Refugees admissions to the U.S. from all countries will resume soon, with new rules to be issued in an executive order by President Trump, the Homeland Security Department (DHS) announced during a conference call Tuesday.
The Trump administration had halted most refugee admissions in June for 120 days, a period which expires Tuesday.
Over the past 120 days while DHS, State and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) were conducting a review of the refugee admission process to the U.S., they determined that an additional 90 days for an in-depth threat assessment will be necessary for refugee admissions from 11 countries. They are not naming these countries for security reasons. However, during this review process, DHS will be able to consider admitting refugees from these 11 countries on a case-by-case basis. They will issue a new assessment of these 11 countries after that 90-day review. These are countries that were identified in 2015 by the Security Advisory Opinion Process.
The new increased security measures for refugee applicants will include increased data collection, better information sharing between DHS and the State Department and an improved ability to detect fraud.
As part of the new process, the administration will collect places of employment and names of family members as well as examine social media. Officials who screen these applicants will also receive new guidance and training to help detect fraud.
Refugees coming into the U.S. already faced rigorous screening prior to the implementation of the Trump administration's refugee ban. They had to apply for refugee status and resettlement with the U.N. High Commission on Refugees, which collects initial documentation and biographic information, which was then transferred to a State Department-funded Resettlement Support Center. Afterwards, the center conducted an in-depth interview with the applicant, entered the documentation into a State Department system, and then cross-references and verifies data, and sent the information needed for a background check to other U.S. agencies.
From there, five entities -- the National Counterterrorism Center, FBI, DHS, Defense Department and the State Department -- screened the applicant using data from the centers. The screening process included checks for security threats such as connections to bad actors and any past criminal or immigration violations.
Syrian refugees received even more scrutiny with an additional enhanced review. The results from the screening process were then returned to DHS and State and trained DHS officers reviewed them, conducted an in-person interview in the host country and collected biometric data. Applicants were also required to complete a class about American culture and undergo a medical screening once they were approved by DHS. Before the refugee arrives in the U.S., CBP and TSA conducted additional screening.
CBS News' Katie Ross Dominick contributed to this report
