A “Neighborhood Support Team,” or NST, is a volunteer group of an average of 20-30 people who work together to welcome a refugee family into their community. Each NST has two team leads who coordinate the efforts, and teams are organized by interest into subcommittees of people who fill specific roles (e.g., benefits, education, employment, etc.). NSTs officially commit to helping a family through their first 6-12 months of resettlement, but the friendships formed may last a lifetime.

Yes! Our 501(c)3 is registered as WelcomeNST, Inc. Our EIN is 85-1674143.

WelcomeNST is 100% privately funded through grants and individual donations.

Your donation will be used to register, train, and support new Neighborhood Support Teams around the country.

NSTs independently raise funds for the family they are welcoming by reaching out to their community.

It is important to note that fundraising platforms (such as Classy) will charge their own transaction fees when donations are made.

WelcomeNST mentors private sponsorship teams who are working to help a refugee family resettle in their community. Our organization guides these groups as they prepare to support a family. WelcomeNST is able to assist teams welcoming newcomers primarily through the Welcome Corps.

WelcomeNST is one of a small number of Private Sponsor Organizations (PSOs) that partners with the Welcome Corps to serve sponsor groups. WelcomeNST has engaged more groups of Americans to privately resettle refugees than any other PSO in the country.

As thousands of families have landed on American soil seeking refuge from Afghanistan, Ukraine, Haiti, Venezuela and other countries over these last few years alone - only to be met with an overwhelmed resettlement system - communities have joined the ranks of first responders by opening their homes, wallets, and lives to welcome the stranger. WelcomeNST is all about unleashing the power of community on the refugee crisis because we believe that the answer to this crisis lies in the unlimited potential of communities to help their neighbors.

We engage communities in the U.S. to form Neighborhood Support Teams (NSTs) to sponsor and welcome refugee families to America.

Fill out our interest form and a member of our team will contact you within 24-48 hours.

What we need most are individuals who are willing to form an NST to welcome a refugee family in their community. We also rely on people sharing our organization with others to introduce more communities to our work. We’d love to speak at your event or church about refugee resettlement and how people can join us!

Donate to support our NSTs that are actively working to help refugees.

The Welcome Corps launched on January 19, 2023, by the U.S. Department of State in coordination with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It creates opportunities for Americans to engage directly in refugee resettlement through private sponsorship, independent of and complementary to the existing work of resettlement agencies.

You must complete an online training, fill out an application, register at least five team members, submit background checks, and show proof of funds. All of this is done via the Welcome Corps website.

The Welcome Corps supports individuals from all over the world who the U.S. government has approved for resettlement to the United States through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). Refugees are referred for resettlement when resettlement is their best possible long-term solution—meaning they cannot return home and do not have any prospects for local integration in the country to which they fled.

Sponsors must secure a minimum of $2,425 in cash and in-kind contributions per refugee they plan to sponsor. You may have to fundraise or rely on in-kind support or donations. This is used to secure and furnish housing and provide for the refugee’s initial basic needs, until they secure employment. To apply, you must upload a document that shows you have already raised 60 percent of this amount ($1,455 per refugee).

Welcoming a family usually necessitates raising more than the minimum required. We have found that our NSTs raise an average of $15,000-$20,000 throughout the process of welcoming.

The application review process takes about two to six weeks.

As part of your Welcome Corps application, your team will indicate the family size you are able to support and information about your community’s resources. This information is used to identify a refugee family that can benefit from the support of your team and your community. They encourage sponsors to be open-minded and flexible about preferences. It may not always be possible to identify a match that meets your specific preferences, or you may need to wait longer for an optimal match. The more flexible you are, the more quickly they will be able to match you with a refugee or refugee family who needs your support.

If you are applying to support a refugee you do not know, it typically takes between two and three months after your application is approved to be matched with a refugee or refugee family and for travel arrangements to be made. This provides your group with time to complete fundraising and make final preparations. Once matched, your group will receive updates throughout the process, including flight details, so that you can greet the refugee newcomer(s) at the airport and take them to their first home in the United States. The length of time this takes can vary.

If you are applying to sponsor someone you know, you should expect that it will take a minimum of six months up to a few years from the time you submit a completed application.

There is a wide range of roles and responsibilities to be divided up among team members. Housing, fundraising, employment, documentation, benefits, education, health, and transportation are some of the areas members can lead or serve. The varied opportunities mean that members can determine which role is best for them given their time, resources, and experience.

It depends on their status. Refugees are covered by federal programs and can receive Matching Grant, Refugee Cash and Medical Assistance, Preferred Communities, and Refugee Support Services, and can access federal assistance programs like TANF, SNAP, and SSI (if appropriate). Benefits for humanitarian parolees and asylum seekers have state specific eligibility.

Yes. The I-94 that they receive upon arrival can be used for temporary work authorization for up to 90 days. NSTs will also need to assist the family in applying for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD). This can be done by submitting an I-765. The fee will be waived.

Those who come in through the asylum process can’t work until their EAD is granted through the I-765.

They will not. NSTs can assist the family in applying for SSN by using Part 2 of the I-765 application.

Finding safe, sanitary, and affordable housing is one of the first and most important roles the NST. No one knows your community better than those who already live there… you! Our mentors will give you helpful guidance as you look for housing, but it will be your team who identifies the housing and arranges for the family to move in upon arrival.

Most families we currently serve, including refugees coming in through Welcome Corps, are issued penalty-free and interest-free travel loans.

We ask that all teams commit to a sponsorship period 6-12 months. That range represents the typical amount of time it takes for a newcomer family to become self-sufficient with the assistance of an NST.

It depends on the program. Those who come through Welcome Corps as refugees and those approved for asylum can apply to become lawful permanent residents after 1 year in the United States. They can apply for citizenship after having lawful permanent resident status for a certain number of years.

Humanitarian parole is a temporary status by definition. Beneficiaries who have not been granted another status--such as asylum, re-parole, or Temporary Protected Status--are not legally allowed to remain in the United States when their humanitarian parole period ends.

All newcomers are subject to biographic and biometric security checks conducted by both USCIS and Customs and Border Patrol before they are granted travel authorization or paroled into the United States.

Yes. A single individual must serve as the Team Lead, but we ask that at least 5 total individuals be listed as core members of the NST. Welcome Corps also has this requirement.