Text Box: NSC’s Refugee Resettlement Program Text Box: Spring 2004 Text Box: Inside this issue:

Our mission:

 

 The mission of NSC is to help immigrants and     refugees participate fully in American society.

 

 Our Vision

We will help immigrants and refugees by:

§ Protecting their legal rights

§ Strengthening families and promoting self-sufficiency

§ Eliminating barriers caused by language and cultural difference

§ Increasing self-sufficiency

§ Promoting public  awareness of the benefits of the benefits of diversity in American society

 

Contact us:

Nationalities Service Center

1300 Spruce Street

Philadelphia PA 19107

215-893-8400

info@nationalitiesservice.org

www.nationalitiesservice.org

 

Jeanne McGuire

Executive Director

 
Text Box: Serving immigrants and refugees in the Delaware Valley since 1921 Text Box: members (spouses, unmarried sons and daughters, parents) who were lawfully admitted to the U.S. as permanent resident aliens, refugees, or asylees. Eligibility will be established on the basis of the Affidavit of Relationship filed. Who should file for an AOR? Every year, the U.S. government lists which nationalities will be allowed into the U.S. as refugees. Therefore, it is important to file when your nationality is listed, as it may not appear next year. Currently AORs are able to be processed for relatives from: Burma, Burundi, Colombia, Congo (Brazzaville), Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iran, Liberia, Somalia, and Sudan. (This typically changes in October of each year.) Relatives are also eligible to file a refugee visa petition called Visa-92/93. Applicants admitted to the U.S. as refugees or granted status, as Text Box: government has come nowhere near resettling 70,000 refugees in the last few years. Approximately 28,000 refugees were resettled into the United States in 2003, and current estimates are that 38,00 will arrive this year. What is an AOR / Affidavit of Relationship? An AOR is a form by which a relative can affirm the relationship between a former refugee now living in the United States and an individual or individuals still in a refugee camp. Completion and notarization of this form begins the process of family reunification. NSC refugee services staff will assist in preparing and filing an AOR. NSC sends completed AORs to its national affiliate office, Immigration and Refugee Services of America (IRSA) in Washington, DC. Once all of the necessary information has been provided, the AOR is then forwarded on to the appropriate processing post overseas. The AOR can be filed by qualifying family Text Box: The quickest way for a refugee to make it into the U.S. is by having a relative who already lives here file an Affidavit of Relationship (AOR). The relative can file on behalf of the overseas family members. Each year the President of the United States, in consultation with Congress, sets the number of refugees to be accepted for U.S. resettlement. Among industrialized countries, the United States has consistently accepted the largest number. The current limit is 70,000, the same as in 2003(less than ½ of 1% of refugees worldwide). This total is divided regionally, that is only certain nationalities are allowed in as refugees. In reality the U.S.

See Refugee Resettlement on page 3 . . .

NSC’s refugee resettlement program

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Senior center’s own artist

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NSC awarded $7,400 in attorney fees by court

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