Washington, United States. U.S. President Donald Trump increased the refugee admissions ceiling by 10,000 for this year to allow more white South Africans to enter the country, according to a signed presidential determination reviewed by Reuters.
South African response
The document, dated May 21, said white South Africans of Afrikaner ethnicity face an emergency situation because of the “incitement of racially motivated violence” by the government and political parties in the majority-Black country.
South African foreign ministry spokesperson Chrispin Phiri rejected that assessment in response to a Reuters request for comment.
“The assertion that white Afrikaners, in particular, endure systemic persecution is entirely without foundation,” Phiri said in a statement to Reuters.
Trump refugee policy
Trump, a Republican, froze refugee admissions from around the world when he took office in January 2025, but weeks later launched a program exclusively aimed at bringing in white South Africans.
The effort prioritized white refugees while excluding thousands of others from Africa, Asia and elsewhere, and was part of a broader challenge to humanitarian norms around refugee protection.
The Trump administration has admitted only three non-South African refugees this fiscal year, government figures show.
Cap increase
The White House document did not give specific examples of South Africa’s government allegedly inciting racial violence.
A State Department spokesperson declined to confirm the 10,000-person increase to the refugee cap but said the program was a Trump priority and that the president would determine refugee levels.
Trump initially set the refugee ceiling at a record-low 7,500 for fiscal year 2026, which ends on September 30. But his administration had already brought in 6,000 white South Africans through the end of April, government figures show.
Trump’s decision to increase the number of refugee admissions brings the total ceiling to 17,500.