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Refugee Services Introduction

The Colorado Refugee Services Program (CRSP) is the state refugee office and is responsible for the statewide coordination of refugee resettlement. CRSP does not offer any direct services but instead works through partners statewide to serve refugees. Refugee services are holistic and include initial resettlement, service navigation, health and mental health, English Language Acquisition, workforce services, immigration legal services, youth and older adult services. Visit the Refugee Services program pages to learn more.

CRSP’s funding comes from the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ORR funds the Colorado Refugee Services Program (CSRP), which then grants funds to partners across Colorado to provide direct services. All programs and resources outlined in the Refugee Services section of this website are funded by ORR, unless otherwise noted. Eligible individuals can typically access ORR-funded services for up to 60 months from their initial eligibility date.

Am I Eligible? 

Funding for CRSP and all refugee services comes from the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. To receive refugee services funded by ORR, you must have an ORR-eligible status which means that you possess a particular status and are within the eligibility period.

 

Eligible statuses include:

  • Refugees
  • Asylees   
  • Cuban and Haitian Entrants
  • Amerasians
  • Lawful Permanent Residents (who formerly held an ORR-eligible status)
  • Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrants
  • Certain Afghan Humanitarian Parolees 
  • Certain Ukrainian Humanitarian Parolees
  • Victims of Human Trafficking
  • Unaccompanied Refugee Minors

Eligibility for ORR-funded programs and services is typically for up to 60 months from the original date of eligibility. Visit ORR’s website to learn more about these statuses and documentation requirements.

Use of the Term ‘Refugee’

The word ‘refugee’ has both a legal definition, as well as colloquial usages. Throughout the refugee services program webpages, ‘refugee’ is used as an umbrella term and it includes all ORR-eligible statuses.

Additional Federal Programs

There are several federally-funded programs for refugees that also operate in Colorado through resettlement agencies, but that are not supervised by CRSP. These programs include Reception & PlacementMatching Grant, and Preferred Communities.