United Nations High Commission for Refugees (unhcr)
What We Do
Hotline
UNHCR offers a free hotline for those detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Our Story
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency that seeks to “safeguard the rights and well-being of people who have been forced to flee.” The UNHCR’s Washington, D.C. field office runs a protection hotline that primarily provides asylum seekers in detention in the United States with access to the resources that they need to build their asylum case. After each conversation, the staff member spends an average of an hour developing a “legal packet.” The packet includes a guide that’s written for detained people fighting their case pro se, information about how to file an appeal and other legal information, as well as helpful reports and articles on the country of origin and type of claim. UNHCR makes many of its resources available to the public in English and Spanish. As of May 2024, the hotline is now operated through a partnership agreement with the American Bar Association (ABA).