March 21, 2024
Evacuate Our Allies Welcomes Additional Special Immigrant Visas and Program Reauthorization
WASHINGTON - The Evacuate Our Allies (EOA) coalition welcomes the inclusion of 12,000 additional Special Immigrant Visas (SIV) and the extension of the program through December 31, 2025 in the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPs) Fiscal Year 2024 Appropriations Bill. Additional Special Immigrant Visas for Afghans who assisted the U.S. mission are critical to ensuring pathways remain open to protection and stability for our allies, but Congress must do more to ensure the long term viability of the program.
While this funding bill provides necessary immediate relief, Congress must press forward with urgency and authorize additional visas in FY2025. The EOA coalition notes that the final number of approved visas is 8,000 less than the request in the approved text of the Senate SFOPs bill and the Afghan Allies Protection Act (AAPA, S. 1786/H.R.3808) . With federal budget negotiations already underway for FY25, Congress must ensure that an additional 20,000 visas are included in the NDAA or another spending vehicle – a request that has already been included in the President’s FY2025 Budget.
Congress must honor the promise we made to Afghan allies and stand firmly against endangering real Afghan lives due to partisan brinkmanship. Additional visas allow Afghan allies abroad to continue to seek safety in the U.S., and those that have relocated already to the U.S. to adjust to lawful permanent resident status and begin their lives anew. In addition to securing additional visas in FY25, Congress should also continue to work to expand pathways of protection for Afghan nationals through the AAPA and the Afghan Adjustment Act (AAA, S. 2327/H.R. 4627), both widely bipartisan bills that have stalled in Congress despite overwhelming American support for the legislation.
Evacuate Our Allies appreciates the ongoing leadership of Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Chris Coons (D-DE) and Representatives Jason Crow (D-CO), Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) for their championing of the SIV program and notes the strong bipartisan support for Afghan allies. Senator Shaheen recently led a bipartisan letter to Senate leadership urging that the appropriations bill include 20,000 additional visas. The Coalition extends our gratitude to Senators Mike Rounds (R-SD), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Jack Reed (D-RI), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) who joined Shaheen on this letter.
Evacuate Our Allies recognizes the months of advocacy from our member organizations and individual volunteers behind this effort. We remain committed to our ongoing work on behalf of Afghans needing protection.
Read more from our Coalition members on the need for additional SIVs here: