JOHANNESBURG — The Trump administration announced it will admit an additional 10,000 white South Africans as refugees in 2026, citing "an unforeseen emergency refugee situation" and raising the annual refugee cap from 7,500 to 17,500. President Donald Trump blamed the South African government for "recent increases in the incitement of racially motivated violence," though he provided no specific information to substantiate the claim.

The South African government rejected the assertion that a humanitarian emergency affecting white people exists in the country. South African Foreign Ministry spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said accusations of systemic persecution of Afrikaners were unfounded. Phiri added that some beneficiaries of the U.S. refugee program have chosen to return to South Africa.

Afrikaner advocacy groups also disputed the U.S. policy justification. AfriForum, a lobbying organization for white Afrikaners with more than 300,000 members, stated it "does not have information" regarding the existence of an emergency refugee situation. Solidariteit, an Afrikaner trade union, declared that refugee status is not a viable solution for Afrikaners, who should instead thrive in South Africa.

The additional 10,000 refugee slots are reserved exclusively for white South Africans, effectively blocking applicants from other countries from entering through the program. Around 6,000 South Africans have moved to the U.S. since the Afrikaner refugee program began in 2025, according to U.S. government data. In the first fiscal year of Trump's second term, the administration resettled 506 refugees, nearly 70% of whom were white South Africans, per the Migration Policy Institute.

Refugee groups have questioned why white South Africans are being prioritized over people from countries experiencing war or natural disasters. Bryony Fox, a social justice researcher at Stellenbosch University, said, "This risks politicizing refugee protection in a way that may ultimately weaken the legitimacy and universality of the refugee regime itself." The Immigration and Nationality Act allows the president to issue an emergency determination updating the refugee cap in the event of an "unforeseen emergency refugee situation" after consulting with Congress.