Welcome Corps – IRIS-Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services

IRIS is excited to partner in the national launch of Welcome Corps to welcome refugee newcomers as they begin life in America. You can join us to sponsor refugees. As a sponsor, your group of at least 5 US residents will secure and furnish housing, greet refugee newcomers at the airport, enroll children in school, and help adults find employment. These shared acts of welcome strengthen communities and make it easier for newcomers to adjust to life in the U.S. — providing access to critical services, social networks and initial financial and in-kind support.

What Is the Welcome Corps?

Welcome Corps equips U.S.-based residents, working in groups of at least five, to welcome refugee newcomers as they begin life in America.

As a sponsor in the Welcome Corps, your group will secure and furnish initial housing, greet the refugee newcomers at the airport, enroll children in school, and help adults to find employment. These shared acts of welcome strengthen communities and make it easier for newcomers to adjust to life in the United States—providing access to critical services, social networks and initial financial and in-kind support.

In 2023, the Welcome Corps aims to mobilize and equip at least 10,000 Americans and lawful permanent residents to welcome refugees through private sponsorship and experience the community benefits of welcoming.

Many of the refugee families who will be welcomed by sponsors in the first months of Welcome Corps will come from Sub-Saharan Africa, where they have been waiting for years to restart their lives in safety.

Welcome Corps is a private sponsorship of refugees program launched by the Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) as part of the Biden administration’s commitment to restoring and enhancing the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP).

In December 2022, PRM entered into an agreement with the Community Sponsorship Hub and its consortium of partners to design, implement and launch Welcome Corps and Welcome.US.

The Welcome Corps consortium includes six organizations with expertise in refugee resettlement, protection and welcome

Church World Service/ Refugee Welcome Collective, Community Sponsorship Hub (CSH), Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services (IRIS), International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), International Rescue Committee (IRC)

Learn more from these frequently asked questions OR by watching this recording of a recent General Information Session

If you would like to sponsor someone you know, please visit the Welcome Corps website to learn more about the application process and guidelines!

If you are a current or former client, staff member, or other IRIS supporter with an interest in sponsoring someone you know, please complete this Interest Form with IRIS, but do not wait for a response from us. Instead, please go directly to the Welcome Corps website, use the Refugee Eligibility Tool to assess your situation, and attend an Application Support Session to understand the application process.

Are you a refugee looking for information on how you can be resettled in the United States and supported by private sponsors through the Welcome Corps? Learn more about the U.S. resettlement process and the Welcome Corps here: https://welcomecorps.org/resources/for-refugees/. Select languages from the translation menu located at the top of your screen.