Immigration Services
Catholic Charities agencies provide care to our sisters and brothers, who often come to us in their time of greatest need. Our ministry to vulnerable people on the move is a cornerstone of our Catholic identity.
Help vulnerable people on the move.
The Challenge
People migrating to the United States are often fleeing war, violence, persecution, economic and political upheaval, and devastating natural disasters. Catholic social teaching holds that humans have a right to move to protect their lives and families. Catholic Charities immigration services support the federal government’s right and duty to regulate our borders while also calling for bipartisan, effective, humane reforms to our country’s broken immigration system.
Answering the call to serve migrants on the border, Sr. Joyce and Sr. Roseanna make sandwiches and cupcakes for those arriving at Catholic Charities Diocese of Laredo. “God is with us in everything we do.”
The Response
As the domestic charitable arm of the U.S. Catholic Church, Catholic Charities serves our vulnerable sisters and brothers and welcomes the stranger, all within the confines of the law. The Gospel mandate of Matthew 25 compels us to do so.
Our work is humanitarian, not political, and we have collaborated with every administration since our founding in 1910.
FEATURED resource
Overview of immigration work
And They Shall Know Us by Our Love invites you to learn more about the ministry of Catholic Charities agencies at or near the border, rooted in Catholic social teaching, and those who volunteer there, providing basic humanitarian needs such as food, shelter and clothing.
Editorial photo credit: Mohammad Bash / Shutterstock.com
Need assistance? Find a local Catholic Charities agency.
In whatever place we decide to build our future, in the country of our birth or elsewhere, the important thing is that there always be a community ready to welcome, protect, promote and integrate everyone, without distinctions and without excluding anyone.
Pope Francis, 109th Day of Migrants and Refugees, 2023
Editorial photo credit: praszkiewicz / Shutterstock.com
featured story
For love of Ukraine
Large populations of Ukrainians in Cleveland, New York, Jacksonville and Anchorage have made those cities, and the Catholic Charities agencies that serve them, the most-frequent resettlement destinations in the network.
The Impact
Catholic Charities works to welcome and integrate immigrants, refugees and asylees, offering critical services to vulnerable populations.
119
CC agencies provide services to migrants
627,860
Individuals received immigration services
Advocacy
Every two years, after a new Congress is seated, CCUSA’s Social Policy Team crafts legislative priorities and recommendations based on the ongoing efforts of the Catholic Charities network of agencies and the needs of the vulnerable populations Catholic Charities serves.
Testimonial
This work matters because the most important thing is to love. And loving is doing. And doing is for our neighbor. And who’s our neighbor? Our neighbor is everybody who walks through that door at Catholic Charities.
Patricia, who volunteers with migrants at Catholic Charities Diocese of San Diego
Program Stories
