During the past five decades, the U.S. has resettled over 3 million refugees, making it one of the leading countries for finding new homes for people fleeing violence, persecution, and war.
In 2021, then-President Donald Trump lowered the annual cap of refugees that could be admitted into the country to 15,000. Even as the Biden administration has raised the ceiling to 125,000, the annual number of refugees arriving in the U.S. didn't immediately bounce back to pre-Trump administration levels. The numbers are increasing though, with over 25,000 refugees arriving in the U.S. in the 2022 fiscal year, twice the 2021 total.
Refugee arrivals during the 2023 fiscal year dramatically outpaced the prior two years, reaching over 60,000 from October 2022 to September 2023.
In September 2024, the greatest number of refugees admitted by the U.S. came from Venezeula, Afghanistan, and Congo. Each nation faces a unique set of circumstances that can make their citizens unsafe if they stay in their home country.
In Venezuela, over 7.5 million people have left the country due to extreme inflation, violence, food and medicine scarcity, and other factors. Most have resettled in Latin American and Caribbean countries. Afghan refugees have been fleeing to neighboring countries for decades, especially to Pakistan and Iran, which combined host over 8 million Afghans. For the last three decades, Congo, also called the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been struggling with a series of civil wars and internal battles that have left millions of people displaced, both internally and externally, with many people fleeing to neighboring countries.
Stacker referenced data from the Refugee Processing Center to compile statistics on the number of refugees and their countries of origin resettled in Pennsylvania in September 2024. Countries with only one refugee since October 2023 are not included.
September refugee statistics
Countries where refugees arrived from in September
To Pennsylvania:
#1. Syria: 146
#2. Afghanistan: 121
#3. Venezuela: 119
#4. Congo: 114
#5. Somalia: 52
#6. Nicaragua: 20
#7. Eritrea: 18
#8. Guatemala: 13
#9. Sudan: 12
#10. Pakistan: 10
#11. Iraq: 7
#12. Burundi: 6
#13. Honduras: 5
#14. Ukraine: 4
#14. Haiti: 4
#14. Myanmar: 4
#17. Iran: 3
#17. Colombia: 3
#19. Republic of South Sudan: 2
#19. Cuba: 2
#21. Yemen: 1
To the U.S. as a whole:
#1. Venezuela: 3,653
#2. Congo: 2,296
#3. Afghanistan: 2,068
#4. Syria: 1,585
#5. Myanmar: 1,455
States that accepted the most refugees in September:
#1. Texas: 1,702
#2. California: 1,550
#3. New York: 918
#4. Florida: 768
#5. Illinois: 750
Read on to see the countries that Pennsylvania has accepted the most refugees from since the start of the fiscal year in October 2023.
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1 / 39Refugees that arrived from Syria since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 954
To the U.S. as a whole: 11,274
Top states receiving refugees from Syria
#1. Michigan: 1,186
#2. New York: 1,112
#3. Pennsylvania: 954
#4. California: 763
#5. Texas: 676
Katja Tsvetkova // Shutterstock
2 / 39Refugees that arrived from Congo since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 930
To the U.S. as a whole: 19,922
Top states receiving refugees from Congo
#1. Texas: 1,791
#2. Kentucky: 1,735
#3. Ohio: 1,343
#4. New York: 1,295
#5. Arizona: 1,274
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3 / 39Refugees that arrived from Afghanistan since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 606
To the U.S. as a whole: 14,707
Top states receiving refugees from Afghanistan
#1. California: 3,171
#2. Texas: 1,574
#3. Virginia: 1,257
#4. Washington: 889
#5. New York: 658
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4 / 39Refugees that arrived from Venezuela since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 447
To the U.S. as a whole: 12,878
Top states receiving refugees from Venezuela
#1. Texas: 2,039
#2. Florida: 1,883
#3. Illinois: 664
#4. New York: 514
#5. Georgia: 512
Chantal de Bruijne // Shutterstock
5 / 39Refugees that arrived from Myanmar since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 185
To the U.S. as a whole: 7,347
Top states receiving refugees from Myanmar
#1. Texas: 882
#2. Illinois: 761
#3. New York: 736
#4. Wisconsin: 570
#5. Georgia: 462
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Lauren Squire // Shutterstock
6 / 39Refugees that arrived from Guatemala since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 150
To the U.S. as a whole: 5,017
Top states receiving refugees from Guatemala
#1. California: 794
#2. Texas: 551
#3. Florida: 257
#4. North Carolina: 255
#5. New York: 219
Dave Primov // Shutterstock
7 / 39Refugees that arrived from Somalia since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 149
To the U.S. as a whole: 4,801
Top states receiving refugees from Somalia
#1. Minnesota: 1,267
#2. New York: 366
#3. Ohio: 326
#4. Arizona: 280
#5. Missouri: 257
Matyas Rehak // Shutterstock
8 / 39Refugees that arrived from Sudan since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 132
To the U.S. as a whole: 2,180
Top states receiving refugees from Sudan
#1. New York: 194
#2. Texas: 170
#3. Ohio: 146
#4. Pennsylvania: 132
#5. Missouri: 124
W_NAMKET // Shutterstock
9 / 39Refugees that arrived from Pakistan since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 120
To the U.S. as a whole: 856
Top states receiving refugees from Pakistan
#1. Pennsylvania: 120
#2. Texas: 88
#3. Virginia: 62
#4. Illinois: 57
#5. North Carolina: 56
Milosz Maslanka // Shutterstock
10 / 39Refugees that arrived from Nicaragua since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 119
To the U.S. as a whole: 3,299
Top states receiving refugees from Nicaragua
#1. Florida: 382
#2. Texas: 313
#3. California: 259
#4. North Carolina: 139
#5. Minnesota: 135
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Dave Primov // Shutterstock
11 / 39Refugees that arrived from Eritrea since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 93
To the U.S. as a whole: 2,410
Top states receiving refugees from Eritrea
#1. Texas: 286
#2. Washington: 253
#3. lowa: 162
#4. North Carolina: 141
#5. Maryland: 129
Matyas Rehak // Shutterstock
12 / 39Refugees that arrived from Colombia since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 76
To the U.S. as a whole: 1,382
Top states receiving refugees from Colombia
#1. Florida: 137
#2. Texas: 117
#3. New York: 114
#4. Washington: 95
#5. North Carolina: 93
Ruslan Lytvyn // Shutterstock
13 / 39Refugees that arrived from Ukraine since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 49
To the U.S. as a whole: 1,447
Top states receiving refugees from Ukraine
#1. Washington: 524
#2. California: 248
#3. New York: 90
#4. Florida: 74
#5. South Carolina: 61
Rostasedlacek // Shutterstock
14 / 39Refugees that arrived from Burundi since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 44
To the U.S. as a whole: 588
Top states receiving refugees from Burundi
#1. Texas: 79
#2. Arizona: 50
#3. Pennsylvania: 44
#4. New York: 43
#5. lowa: 37
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15 / 39Refugees that arrived from Haiti since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 41
To the U.S. as a whole: 256
Top states receiving refugees from Haiti
#1. Pennsylvania: 41
#2. Florida: 31
#3. Nevada: 16
#3. Texas: 16
#5. Georgia: 15
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16 / 39Refugees that arrived from Central African Republic since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 41
To the U.S. as a whole: 864
Top states receiving refugees from Central African Republic
#1. Missouri: 89
#2. Texas: 82
#3. Michigan: 63
#4. Georgia: 60
#5. Colorado: 56
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17 / 39Refugees that arrived from El Salvador since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 39
To the U.S. as a whole: 1,331
Top states receiving refugees from El Salvador
#1. California: 187
#2. Texas: 174
#3. Maryland: 119
#4. Virginia: 99
#5. North Carolina: 83
punghi // Shutterstock
18 / 39Refugees that arrived from Republic of South Sudan since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 32
To the U.S. as a whole: 1,320
Top states receiving refugees from Republic of South Sudan
#1. Nebraska: 151
#2. Texas: 122
#3. New York: 94
#4. lowa: 88
#5. Colorado: 68
Katja Tsvetkova // Shutterstock
19 / 39Refugees that arrived from Republic of Congo since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 28
To the U.S. as a whole: 353
Top states receiving refugees from Republic of Congo
#1. Missouri: 32
#2. Pennsylvania: 28
#3. Wisconsin: 26
#4. New York: 25
#4. Illinois: 25
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20 / 39Refugees that arrived from Mali since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 27
To the U.S. as a whole: 185
Top states receiving refugees from Mali
#1. Pennsylvania: 27
#2. New York: 24
#3. South Carolina: 23
#4. Missouri: 16
#5. Connecticut: 13
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21 / 39Refugees that arrived from Belarus since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 24
To the U.S. as a whole: 391
Top states receiving refugees from Belarus
#1. Washington: 91
#2. California: 89
#3. Massachusetts: 34
#4. New York: 27
#5. Pennsylvania: 24
Focus and Blur // Shutterstock
22 / 39Refugees that arrived from Iraq since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 20
To the U.S. as a whole: 2,278
Top states receiving refugees from Iraq
#1. California: 364
#2. Michigan: 260
#3. Texas: 189
#4. Nebraska: 136
#5. Illinois: 122
Omri Eliyahu // Shutterstock
23 / 39Refugees that arrived from Kazakhstan since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 19
To the U.S. as a whole: 111
Top states receiving refugees from Kazakhstan
#1. Washington: 43
#2. California: 19
#2. Pennsylvania: 19
#4. Oregon: 10
#5. Massachusetts: 8
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24 / 39Refugees that arrived from Honduras since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 18
To the U.S. as a whole: 901
Top states receiving refugees from Honduras
#1. Texas: 144
#2. Florida: 108
#3. New York: 62
#4. California: 48
#5. Georgia: 44
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25 / 39Refugees that arrived from Cameroon since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 13
To the U.S. as a whole: 120
Top states receiving refugees from Cameroon
#1. Pennsylvania: 13
#1. Texas: 13
#3. Minnesota: 9
#4. Nevada: 8
#5. Maryland: 7
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26 / 39Refugees that arrived from Russia since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 13
To the U.S. as a whole: 347
Top states receiving refugees from Russia
#1. Washington: 83
#2. California: 78
#3. Oregon: 43
#4. Minnesota: 22
#4. North Carolina: 22
Beata Tabak // Shutterstock
27 / 39Refugees that arrived from Ivory Coast since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 10
To the U.S. as a whole: 66
Top states receiving refugees from Ivory Coast
#1. Pennsylvania: 10
#2. Minnesota: 8
#3. Massachusetts: 7
#4. Arkansas: 6
#5. Florida: 4
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28 / 39Refugees that arrived from Libya since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 9
To the U.S. as a whole: 49
Top states receiving refugees from Libya
#1. Michigan: 9
#1. Pennsylvania: 9
#1. Texas: 9
#4. Utah: 8
#5. lowa: 7
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29 / 39Refugees that arrived from Kyrgyzstan since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 8
To the U.S. as a whole: 80
Top states receiving refugees from Kyrgyzstan
#1. New York: 37
#2. Minnesota: 15
#3. Oregon: 8
#3. Pennsylvania: 8
#5. Illinois: 7
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30 / 39Refugees that arrived from Lebanon since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 6
To the U.S. as a whole: 6
Top states receiving refugees from Lebanon
#1. Pennsylvania: 6
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31 / 39Refugees that arrived from Guinea since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 5
To the U.S. as a whole: 78
Top states receiving refugees from Guinea
#1. Colorado: 15
#2. Georgia: 9
#3. North Carolina: 7
#4. Michigan: 6
#5. Arizona: 5
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32 / 39Refugees that arrived from Nigeria since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 4
To the U.S. as a whole: 111
Top states receiving refugees from Nigeria
#1. Illinois: 16
#2. Missouri: 14
#3. Arizona: 13
#3. North Carolina: 13
#5. Texas: 11
JoostP // Shutterstock
33 / 39Refugees that arrived from Turkmenistan since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 4
To the U.S. as a whole: 7
Top states receiving refugees from Turkmenistan
#1. Pennsylvania: 4
#2. Oregon: 3
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34 / 39Refugees that arrived from Georgia since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 4
To the U.S. as a whole: 34
Top states receiving refugees from Georgia
#1. Washington: 23
#2. Pennsylvania: 4
#3. California: 3
#4. Indiana: 2
#4. New York: 2
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35 / 39Refugees that arrived from Rwanda since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 3
To the U.S. as a whole: 220
Top states receiving refugees from Rwanda
#1. Texas: 49
#2. Arizona: 19
#3. Kentucky: 13
#4. South Carolina: 12
#5. Illinois: 11
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36 / 39Refugees that arrived from Senegal since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 3
To the U.S. as a whole: 84
Top states receiving refugees from Senegal
#1. Massachusetts: 16
#2. South Carolina: 15
#3. Florida: 9
#3. Georgia: 9
#5. Texas: 8
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37 / 39Refugees that arrived from Iran since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 3
To the U.S. as a whole: 470
Top states receiving refugees from Iran
#1. California: 277
#2. Texas: 53
#3. Michigan: 17
#4. Washington: 14
#4. Georgia: 14
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38 / 39Refugees that arrived from Cuba since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 3
To the U.S. as a whole: 255
Top states receiving refugees from Cuba
#1. Florida: 98
#2. Texas: 33
#3. New York: 12
#3. Maryland: 12
#5. Tennessee: 10
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39 / 39Refugees that arrived from Yemen since October 2023
To Pennsylvania: 2
To the U.S. as a whole: 198
Top states receiving refugees from Yemen
#1. Michigan: 46
#2. New York: 26
#3. Georgia: 17
#4. Texas: 15
#5. North Carolina: 13
This story features data reporting and writing by Emma Rubin and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 48 states.
