On July 4, President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) into law—a massive budget reconciliation bill that makes substantive changes to U.S. policy. The tense, lengthy process included over a day of amendments in the Senate, followed by the longest vote in the history of the House of Representatives, before finally passing the House by a vote of 218- 214.
What impact will the OBBBA have on refugees and other immigrants?
The bill is, without a doubt, unprecedented in the harm it will cause refugee and other immigrant communities. During the Congressional debate, Global Refuge and our network joined other advocates to fight back against several proposed changes that would be particularly egregious. We were proud to support outreach to both the House and Senate including a letter signed by over 100 organizations on SNAP, Medicare and Medicaid eligibility, and we also supported a Congressional press conference focused on the impact of the legislation on refugees and immigrants.
What are some of the biggest changes to immigration policy in the OBBBA?
The OBBBA dramatically increases federal spending on detention, deportation, border barriers, and other immigration-related measures.
This includes nearly $47 billion in new spending on border wall and barrier construction, $45 billion for adult and family detention capacity, and nearly $30 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
As Global Refuge President & CEO Krish O’Mara Vignarajah said in a recent press release, “This bill…devotes unprecedented resources towards a sprawling human incarceration machine, while stripping support from those who followed legal processes to seek safety through proper channels. Nothing could be more at odds with the balanced approach Americans overwhelmingly favor as it relates to border security and legal immigration pathways.”
The OBBBA excludes lawfully present refugees and asylees from key support programs before they obtain green card status.
Program exclusions include:
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or food stamps, which helps to keep food on the table for refugee families while they get their footing in the United States;
- Medicaid, which allows low-income families to access health insurance and critical mental and physical healthcare; and
- Medicare, which provides healthcare for refugees and other immigrants who are 65 years or older (as well as those who meet other specific criteria).
Eliminating access to these programs not only denies newcomers essential support for basic necessities. It can also make it extremely difficult to achieve self-sufficiency, dismantling critical safety nets and resulting in higher rates of poverty and illness.
The OBBBA introduces or increases many immigration fees.
The bill includes several provisions that make immigration applications and work permits expensive and inaccessible to people seeking safety, transforming humanitarian protection into a pay-to-play system. Changes include:
- A new $100 non-waivable fee to apply for asylum protections and as well as an $100 annual fee for each year the asylum application is pending
- A new application fee of $250 for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS)
- An increased application fee for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) from $50 to $500, without a fee waiver option
- A higher cost ($550) for applying for an initial work permit based on asylum applications, parole, or TPS
- A fee of $275 for each renewal or extension of employment authorization for asylum applicants, parole, and TPS
We believe the OBBBA impact will be profoundly destabilizing to immigrant communities across the country, making access to humanitarian protection more costly, access to work permits more difficult, and access to health care more restrictive.
Were immigration advocates able to make changes to the OBBBA?
Many of the bill’s most harmful provisions remained. Through rulings by the Senate parliamentarian and pressure from constituents and advocacy groups, however, some positive inroads were made. The proposed asylum application fee decreased from $1,000 to $100, for example, and an astronomical fee for sponsors of unaccompanied children was removed. We’re incredibly grateful to our network for their many e-mails and phone calls to their members of Congress.
What’s next?
While the fight over the OBBBA is over, the work of welcome continues.
As the law is enacted, Global Refuge will continue our advocacy to educate communities and members of Congress about the impact of these provisions and to work for change that restores access to basic assistance for refugees and asylees.
Global Refuge will never stop advocating for welcoming refugees, asylees, and immigrants to the United States. Our network and allies remain heavily involved in key bipartisan efforts to preserve protections and pathways for immigrants.
Sign up for Global Refuge’s Advocacy newsletter to keep up to date with advocacy updates, opportunities, and resources. We look forward to advocating alongside you.
