Foreword

Welcome to the United States: A Guidebook for Refugees provides refugees being resettled in the United States with general information about what they will encounter and services they will need during their first months in the country. Welcome aims to help these U.S.-bound refugees develop realistic expectations about employment, education, health, and other aspects of life in the United States.

The guidebook was written under the direction of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration. Federal and state officials, representatives of resettlement agencies, and recently resettled refugees contributed to the writing of the guide.

Available in number of languages, Welcome is distributed to overseas processing agencies and to refugees overseas who have been approved for U.S. admission but have not completed their processing. It is also distributed to those who assist refugees during their initial resettlement, so that these service providers are aware of the information their refugee clients receive prior to arrival in the U.S.

Welcome to the United States: A Guidebook for Refugees replaces an earlier publication for refugees, A Guide to Resettlement in the United States.

The Cultural Orientation Project--http://www.culturalorientation.net, for more information contact sanja@cal.org
Last Updated: 4/25/00