F.A.Q.
About the Refugee Foster Care Program
Q. What is Refugee Foster Care?
A. Each year, countless refugee and Asylee youths are driven from countries for reasons of persecution. Many are alone, separated from family, or orphaned by war. They can’t go home and they can’t stay where they are. The Refugee Foster Care Program accepts these unaccompanied minors from around the world and resettles them in foster families throughout the Bay Area. They come from many different countries and speak many different languages. They long for safety, care, family, and a place to call home.
About Refugee Youths
Q. Who are refugee foster youths?
A. A large number of our youth are refugees from overseas refugee camps. They have been forced out of their home countries due to war and conflict. They were orphaned or separated from their parents. A smaller number of our youth are unaccompanied Asylees, trafficking victims, or other minors who are placed in foster families. Youth are referred into the program through the Office of Refugee Resettlement and the US Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Q. Where do refugee youths come from?
A. Youth come from all over the world, from countries such as Afghanistan, El Salvador, Eritrea, Guatemala, Myanmar, and Sudan.
Q. What’s the difference between a refugee and an asylee youth?
A. Both a refugee and an asylee is someone who has been forced to flee her or his country because of a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, social group or political opinion. A refugee is sometimes expanded to include people fleeing war or violence. A refugee registered at a refugee camp overseas may be approved to resettle in the U.S. If approved, a refugee receives her or his immigration status from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees or Office of Refugee Resettlement while overseas. An asylee may be granted asylum while in the U.S. by an immigration judge or asylum officer when it is determined unsafe to return to her or his home country.
Q. Who are trafficking victims?
A. Trafficking victims are people who are brought to the U.S. from other countries with the intent of exploitation for servitude or prostitution. Victims may be eligible for a legal permanent visa called the T-Visa. Unaccompanied minors under age 18 and who are trafficking victims are eligible for our program. They receive.