"he 2016 Annual Survey of Refugees (ASR) conducted by the ORR is a nationally representative survey that collects data on refugees who arrived in the United States from fiscal years 2011 through 2015 and captures their first few years in the country. This often overlooked but important data set, which has not been publicly available up until this year, aids in understanding how new arrivals are faring. An analysis of this survey finds that recently arrived refugees are working hard to improve their livelihoods; they are improving their English, getting jobs, and investing in their futures.
These results are consistent with prior research findings that refugees, over time, have high labor force participation rates, improve their English-language skills, and decrease their public benefit use. Research also finds that they represent a net positive to the U.S. economy after living only eight years in the country. A recent unpublished HHS report, which the Trump administration rejected and suppressed and
The New York Times later obtained, found that refugees contributed a net $63 billion to the national economy over the course of a decade.
In terms of demographics, the ASR survey showed that nearly 22 percent of the recent arrivals were from
Iraq; 17 percent from
Burma; 12 percent from
Bhutan; and 32 percent were from
Somalia, Iran, Nepal, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cuba, and Thailand combined. Regardless of ethnicity or religion, all of these refugees share painful, yet unique, circumstances that forced them to flee their countries. Their strength and resilience are key in helping them face the challenges of resettling in a foreign land. "
Refugees Thrive in America - Center for American Progress