US President Donald Trump gestures to the press as he steps off Air Force One upon arrival at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on October 30, 2025. ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP
The Trump administration announced plans on Thursday, October 30 to drastically cut back the number of refugees to be accepted annually by the United States to a record low and give priority to white South Africans.
Under the new policy, the United States would welcome only 7,500 refugees in fiscal 2026, down from more than 100,000 a year under Democratic president Joe Biden.
The vast majority of those being accepted during the fiscal year which began on October 1 would be white South Africans and "other victims of illegal or unjust discrimination in their respective homelands," according to a White House memo.
"The admissions numbers shall primarily be allocated among Afrikaners from South Africa," it said.
