Where refugees in Ohio are arriving from

During the past five decades, the U.S. has resettled over 3 million refugees, making it one of the leading countries for finding new homes for people fleeing violence, persecution, and war.

In 2021, then-President Donald Trump lowered the annual cap of refugees that could be admitted into the country to 15,000. Even as the Biden administration has raised the ceiling to 125,000, the annual number of refugees arriving in the U.S. didn't immediately bounce back to pre-Trump administration levels. The numbers are increasing though, with over 25,000 refugees arriving in the U.S. in the 2022 fiscal year, twice the 2021 total.

Refugee arrivals during the 2023 fiscal year dramatically outpaced the prior two years, reaching over 60,000 from October 2022 to September 2023.

In September 2024, the greatest number of refugees admitted by the U.S. came from Venezeula, Afghanistan, and Congo. Each nation faces a unique set of circumstances that can make their citizens unsafe if they stay in their home country.

In Venezuela, over 7.5 million people have left the country due to extreme inflation, violence, food and medicine scarcity, and other factors. Most have resettled in Latin American and Caribbean countries. Afghan refugees have been fleeing to neighboring countries for decades, especially to Pakistan and Iran, which combined host over 8 million Afghans. For the last three decades, Congo, also called the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been struggling with a series of civil wars and internal battles that have left millions of people displaced, both internally and externally, with many people fleeing to neighboring countries.

Stacker referenced data from the Refugee Processing Center to compile statistics on the number of refugees and their countries of origin resettled in Ohio in September 2024. Countries with only one refugee since October 2023 are not included.

September refugee statistics
Countries where refugees arrived from in September
To Ohio:
#1. Congo: 126
#2. Venezuela: 91
#3. Somalia: 65
#4. Afghanistan: 29
#5. Guatemala: 27
#6. Nicaragua: 22
#7. Myanmar: 20
#8. Syria: 18
#9. Sudan: 16
#10. Eritrea: 15
#11. Iraq: 12
#12. Colombia: 7
#13. Ethiopia: 6
#13. Yemen: 6
#15. Palestine: 3
#16. El Salvador: 2
#17. Nepal: 1

To the U.S. as a whole:
#1. Venezuela: 3,653
#2. Congo: 2,296
#3. Afghanistan: 2,068
#4. Syria: 1,585
#5. Myanmar: 1,455

States that accepted the most refugees in September:
#1. Texas: 1,702
#2. California: 1,550
#3. New York: 918
#4. Florida: 768
#5. Illinois: 750

Read on to see the countries that Ohio has accepted the most refugees from since the start of the fiscal year in October 2023.

Woman carries basket through street in Bukavu (Stacker/Stacker)

Katja Tsvetkova // Shutterstock

#1. Congo

Refugees that arrived from Congo since October 2023
To Ohio: 1,343

To the U.S. as a whole: 19,922
Top states receiving refugees from Congo
#1. Texas: 1,791
#2. Kentucky: 1,735
#3. Ohio: 1,343
#4. New York: 1,295
#5. Arizona: 1,274

People buying spices at a street market in Damascus (Stacker/Stacker)

hanohiki // Shutterstock

#2. Syria

Refugees that arrived from Syria since October 2023
To Ohio: 467

To the U.S. as a whole: 11,274
Top states receiving refugees from Syria
#1. Michigan: 1,186
#2. New York: 1,112
#3. Pennsylvania: 954
#4. California: 763
#5. Texas: 676

Muslim woman in hijab waking on streets of Hargeisa (Stacker/Stacker)

Dave Primov // Shutterstock

#3. Somalia

Refugees that arrived from Somalia since October 2023
To Ohio: 326

To the U.S. as a whole: 4,801
Top states receiving refugees from Somalia
#1. Minnesota: 1,267
#2. New York: 366
#3. Ohio: 326
#4. Arizona: 280
#5. Missouri: 257

An aerial view of caracas, Venezuela. (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#4. Venezuela

Refugees that arrived from Venezuela since October 2023
To Ohio: 297

To the U.S. as a whole: 12,878
Top states receiving refugees from Venezuela
#1. Texas: 2,039
#2. Florida: 1,883
#3. Illinois: 664
#4. New York: 514
#5. Georgia: 512

Afghan women in burkas pass by a man outside a market (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#5. Afghanistan

Refugees that arrived from Afghanistan since October 2023
To Ohio: 280

To the U.S. as a whole: 14,707
Top states receiving refugees from Afghanistan
#1. California: 3,171
#2. Texas: 1,574
#3. Virginia: 1,257
#4. Washington: 889
#5. New York: 658

Many people on a dirt street in Shendi (Stacker/Stacker)

Matyas Rehak // Shutterstock

#6. Sudan

Refugees that arrived from Sudan since October 2023
To Ohio: 146

To the U.S. as a whole: 2,180
Top states receiving refugees from Sudan
#1. New York: 194
#2. Texas: 170
#3. Ohio: 146
#4. Pennsylvania: 132
#5. Missouri: 124

Woman crossing road by Medlar Market in Asmara (Stacker/Stacker)

Dave Primov // Shutterstock

#7. Eritrea

Refugees that arrived from Eritrea since October 2023
To Ohio: 128

To the U.S. as a whole: 2,410
Top states receiving refugees from Eritrea
#1. Texas: 286
#2. Washington: 253
#3. lowa: 162
#4. North Carolina: 141
#5. Maryland: 129

A horse-drawn taxi passes through a busy shopping area (Stacker/Stacker)

Chantal de Bruijne // Shutterstock

#8. Myanmar

Refugees that arrived from Myanmar since October 2023
To Ohio: 110

To the U.S. as a whole: 7,347
Top states receiving refugees from Myanmar
#1. Texas: 882
#2. Illinois: 761
#3. New York: 736
#4. Wisconsin: 570
#5. Georgia: 462

People walking by a Cathedral in Granada, Nicaragua (Stacker/Stacker)

Milosz Maslanka // Shutterstock

#9. Nicaragua

Refugees that arrived from Nicaragua since October 2023
To Ohio: 101

To the U.S. as a whole: 3,299
Top states receiving refugees from Nicaragua
#1. Florida: 382
#2. Texas: 313
#3. California: 259
#4. North Carolina: 139
#5. Minnesota: 135

Elevated view of Baghdad street scene (Stacker/Stacker)

Focus and Blur // Shutterstock

#10. Iraq

Refugees that arrived from Iraq since October 2023
To Ohio: 78

To the U.S. as a whole: 2,278
Top states receiving refugees from Iraq
#1. California: 364
#2. Michigan: 260
#3. Texas: 189
#4. Nebraska: 136
#5. Illinois: 122

Daily scene of tuktuks, street stalls and motorbikes in San Pedro (Stacker/Stacker)

Lauren Squire // Shutterstock

#11. Guatemala

Refugees that arrived from Guatemala since October 2023
To Ohio: 74

To the U.S. as a whole: 5,017
Top states receiving refugees from Guatemala
#1. California: 794
#2. Texas: 551
#3. Florida: 257
#4. North Carolina: 255
#5. New York: 219

Woman carrying child to Lviv train station on snowy day (Stacker/Stacker)

Ruslan Lytvyn // Shutterstock

#12. Ukraine

Refugees that arrived from Ukraine since October 2023
To Ohio: 54

To the U.S. as a whole: 1,447
Top states receiving refugees from Ukraine
#1. Washington: 524
#2. California: 248
#3. New York: 90
#4. Florida: 74
#5. South Carolina: 61

People walking on the street in Aksum (Stacker/Stacker)

Artush // Shutterstock

#13. Ethiopia

Refugees that arrived from Ethiopia since October 2023
To Ohio: 33

To the U.S. as a whole: 501
Top states receiving refugees from Ethiopia
#1. Minnesota: 152
#2. Washington: 46
#3. Texas: 38
#4. Ohio: 33
#5. Georgia: 29

Men gathered in the streets with motorcycles in Juba (Stacker/Stacker)

punghi // Shutterstock

#14. Republic of South Sudan

Refugees that arrived from Republic of South Sudan since October 2023
To Ohio: 26

To the U.S. as a whole: 1,320
Top states receiving refugees from Republic of South Sudan
#1. Nebraska: 151
#2. Texas: 122
#3. New York: 94
#4. lowa: 88
#5. Colorado: 68

People walking through the Chitta Gate in the old town area of Lahore (Stacker/Stacker)

W_NAMKET // Shutterstock

#15. Pakistan

Refugees that arrived from Pakistan since October 2023
To Ohio: 24

To the U.S. as a whole: 856
Top states receiving refugees from Pakistan
#1. Pennsylvania: 120
#2. Texas: 88
#3. Virginia: 62
#4. Illinois: 57
#5. North Carolina: 56

Pedestrians on a street in Bogota, Columbia (Stacker/Stacker)

Matyas Rehak // Shutterstock

#16. Colombia

Refugees that arrived from Colombia since October 2023
To Ohio: 22

To the U.S. as a whole: 1,382
Top states receiving refugees from Colombia
#1. Florida: 137
#2. Texas: 117
#3. New York: 114
#4. Washington: 95
#5. North Carolina: 93

Cars, people and mopeds on the streets of Kinshasa. (Stacker/Stacker)

Katja Tsvetkova // Shutterstock

#17. Republic of Congo

Refugees that arrived from Republic of Congo since October 2023
To Ohio: 17

To the U.S. as a whole: 353
Top states receiving refugees from Republic of Congo
#1. Missouri: 32
#2. Pennsylvania: 28
#3. Wisconsin: 26
#4. New York: 25
#4. Illinois: 25

An aerial view of El Salvador. (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#18. El Salvador

Refugees that arrived from El Salvador since October 2023
To Ohio: 14

To the U.S. as a whole: 1,331
Top states receiving refugees from El Salvador
#1. California: 187
#2. Texas: 174
#3. Maryland: 119
#4. Virginia: 99
#5. North Carolina: 83

Woman and child on busy market street of Copan (Stacker/Stacker)

amnat30 // Shutterstock

#18. Honduras

Refugees that arrived from Honduras since October 2023
To Ohio: 14

To the U.S. as a whole: 901
Top states receiving refugees from Honduras
#1. Texas: 144
#2. Florida: 108
#3. New York: 62
#4. California: 48
#5. Georgia: 44

Burundian people gather at an outside market (Stacker/Stacker)

Rostasedlacek // Shutterstock

#20. Burundi

Refugees that arrived from Burundi since October 2023
To Ohio: 13

To the U.S. as a whole: 588
Top states receiving refugees from Burundi
#1. Texas: 79
#2. Arizona: 50
#3. Pennsylvania: 44
#4. New York: 43
#5. lowa: 37

Wide view of traditional, older buildings on a hillside in Yemen. (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#21. Yemen

Refugees that arrived from Yemen since October 2023
To Ohio: 12

To the U.S. as a whole: 198
Top states receiving refugees from Yemen
#1. Michigan: 46
#2. New York: 26
#3. Georgia: 17
#4. Texas: 15
#5. North Carolina: 13

Group of children playing soccer on a rural road (Stacker/Stacker)

sandis sveicers // Shutterstock

#22. Central African Republic

Refugees that arrived from Central African Republic since October 2023
To Ohio: 11

To the U.S. as a whole: 864
Top states receiving refugees from Central African Republic
#1. Missouri: 89
#2. Texas: 82
#3. Michigan: 63
#4. Georgia: 60
#5. Colorado: 56

People selling bananas at a street market in Huye (Stacker/Stacker)

Oscar Espinosa // Shutterstock

#23. Rwanda

Refugees that arrived from Rwanda since October 2023
To Ohio: 6

To the U.S. as a whole: 220
Top states receiving refugees from Rwanda
#1. Texas: 49
#2. Arizona: 19
#3. Kentucky: 13
#4. South Carolina: 12
#5. Illinois: 11

An aerial shot of Tashkent TV Tower in Uzbekistan at sunset. (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#23. Uzbekistan

Refugees that arrived from Uzbekistan since October 2023
To Ohio: 6

To the U.S. as a whole: 53
Top states receiving refugees from Uzbekistan
#1. California: 17
#2. New York: 13
#3. Washington: 12
#4. Ohio: 6
#5. Oregon: 5

Women beside fishing boats on the beaches of Yoff (Stacker/Stacker)

Salvador Aznar // Shutterstock

#25. Senegal

Refugees that arrived from Senegal since October 2023
To Ohio: 5

To the U.S. as a whole: 84
Top states receiving refugees from Senegal
#1. Massachusetts: 16
#2. South Carolina: 15
#3. Florida: 9
#3. Georgia: 9
#5. Texas: 8

Woman walking on busy street in Kampala with basket of mangos (Stacker/Stacker)

Vlad Karavaev // Shutterstock

#25. Uganda

Refugees that arrived from Uganda since October 2023
To Ohio: 5

To the U.S. as a whole: 46
Top states receiving refugees from Uganda
#1. Missouri: 12
#2. Massachusetts: 6
#3. Michigan: 5
#3. Ohio: 5
#5. Washington: 4

A distant view of the Havana skyline in Cuba. (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#25. Cuba

Refugees that arrived from Cuba since October 2023
To Ohio: 5

To the U.S. as a whole: 255
Top states receiving refugees from Cuba
#1. Florida: 98
#2. Texas: 33
#3. New York: 12
#3. Maryland: 12
#5. Tennessee: 10

People walking on busy street with market stalls in Gaza (Stacker/Stacker)

Stephen Butler // Shutterstock

#28. Palestine

Refugees that arrived from Palestine since October 2023
To Ohio: 4

To the U.S. as a whole: 30
Top states receiving refugees from Palestine
#1. Illinois: 10
#2. New Jersey: 4
#2. Ohio: 4
#2. Oregon: 4
#5. Michigan: 3

An aerial drone view of niarela Bakamo, Mali (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#28. Mali

Refugees that arrived from Mali since October 2023
To Ohio: 4

To the U.S. as a whole: 185
Top states receiving refugees from Mali
#1. Pennsylvania: 27
#2. New York: 24
#3. South Carolina: 23
#4. Missouri: 16
#5. Connecticut: 13

Armenian people emerge from a church in the city of Metsamore (Stacker/Stacker)

Sebastian Castelier // Shutterstock

#28. Armenia

Refugees that arrived from Armenia since October 2023
To Ohio: 4

To the U.S. as a whole: 319
Top states receiving refugees from Armenia
#1. California: 280
#2. Washington: 21
#3. South Carolina: 9
#4. Oregon: 5
#5. Ohio: 4

Man driving a bicycle rickshaw on a Kathmandu street (Stacker/Stacker)

Shadow of light // Shutterstock

#28. Nepal

Refugees that arrived from Nepal since October 2023
To Ohio: 4

To the U.S. as a whole: 4
Top states receiving refugees from Nepal
#1. Ohio: 4

People walking down a crowded street in New Delhi (Stacker/Stacker)

Filip Jedraszak // Shutterstock

#32. India

Refugees that arrived from India since October 2023
To Ohio: 3

To the U.S. as a whole: 7
Top states receiving refugees from India
#1. Oregon: 4
#2. Ohio: 3

A panoramic view of Minsk, Belarus. (Stacker/Stacker)

karp5 // Shutterstock

#32. Belarus

Refugees that arrived from Belarus since October 2023
To Ohio: 3

To the U.S. as a whole: 391
Top states receiving refugees from Belarus
#1. Washington: 91
#2. California: 89
#3. Massachusetts: 34
#4. New York: 27
#5. Pennsylvania: 24

People gather in a urban park on the streets of Tehran (Stacker/Stacker)

Andrew V Marcus // Shutterstock

#34. Iran

Refugees that arrived from Iran since October 2023
To Ohio: 2

To the U.S. as a whole: 470
Top states receiving refugees from Iran
#1. California: 277
#2. Texas: 53
#3. Michigan: 17
#4. Washington: 14
#4. Georgia: 14

People crossing a busy street near Moscow’s business center (Stacker/Stacker)

YuryKara // Shutterstock

#34. Russia

Refugees that arrived from Russia since October 2023
To Ohio: 2

To the U.S. as a whole: 347
Top states receiving refugees from Russia
#1. Washington: 83
#2. California: 78
#3. Oregon: 43
#4. Minnesota: 22
#4. North Carolina: 22

A distant view of Mount Victoria in Cameroon. (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#34. Cameroon

Refugees that arrived from Cameroon since October 2023
To Ohio: 2

To the U.S. as a whole: 120
Top states receiving refugees from Cameroon
#1. Pennsylvania: 13
#1. Texas: 13
#3. Minnesota: 9
#4. Nevada: 8
#5. Maryland: 7

People standing in front of shops by roadside (Stacker/Stacker)

Beata Tabak // Shutterstock

#34. Ivory Coast

Refugees that arrived from Ivory Coast since October 2023
To Ohio: 2

To the U.S. as a whole: 66
Top states receiving refugees from Ivory Coast
#1. Pennsylvania: 10
#2. Minnesota: 8
#3. Massachusetts: 7
#4. Arkansas: 6
#5. Florida: 4

Aerial drone shot of Conakry, Guinea. (Stacker/Stacker)

Flightseeing-Germany // Shutterstock

#34. Guinea

Refugees that arrived from Guinea since October 2023
To Ohio: 2

To the U.S. as a whole: 78
Top states receiving refugees from Guinea
#1. Colorado: 15
#2. Georgia: 9
#3. North Carolina: 7
#4. Michigan: 6
#5. Arizona: 5

An aerial view of Kingston, Jamaica. (Stacker/Stacker)

Canva

#34. Jamaica

Refugees that arrived from Jamaica since October 2023
To Ohio: 2

To the U.S. as a whole: 12
Top states receiving refugees from Jamaica
#1. California: 2
#1. Colorado: 2
#1. Connecticut: 2
#1. Michigan: 2
#1. North Carolina: 2

This story features data reporting and writing by Emma Rubin and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 48 states.