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An official website of the United States government

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U.S. Department of State (DOS)

The Department of State (DOS) advises the President and leads the nation in foreign policy issues. The State Department negotiates treaties and agreements with foreign entities and represents the United States at the United Nations.

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About Migration

Travel Loan Program

  You Can Manage Your Loan Here!  

The International Organization for Migration's (IOM) Travel Loan Program helps to provide penalty and interest-free loans to refugees arriving in the United States. Refugees who accept these travel loans are required to sign a promissory note prior to departure, committing themselves to repayment of the debt within a determined period after arrival. 

IOM arranges travel for refugee using funds furnished by the Department of State and is mandated to subsequently receive refugees' repayments on behalf of the Department of State. Repayments made are remitted to a revolving fund created between the Department of State and IOM for use by the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) to defray the cost of future refugee travel. 

A Travel Loan repayment is initially assigned either to IOM itself or to a resettlement agency.

The core belief of the Program is that refugees' financial participation in making repayments against their debt will strengthen their determination to make a success of their migration. Furthermore, repayments are utilized by IOM and other receiving agencies to help establish the credit worthiness of the newly arriving refugees. Not only does that help refugees better integrate and contribute to the US economy, it also serves as a protection tool against abusive and predatory lending markets for those without credit worthiness.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has extended travel loans to refugees since 1958, when the Council resolved that refugees "should be requested to pay, in the form of prepayments or in the form of reimbursement with appropriate delays, the highest possible amount towards the cost of their movements, due consideration being given to humanitarian factors, to the situation of refugees and to the necessity for early and successful assimilation in the country of immigration."  

In 1960, acting on authorization from the Council to seek opportunities to increase the proportion of refugees moved on a loan basis, the Director General established the Refugee Loan Fund. The purpose of the Fund is to permit the financing, in part or in whole, of the cost of transport and related services of refugees by interest-free loans made to refugees whose movement to areas of permanent resettlement is included in programs approved by the Council. Repayment of such loans shall be secured by promissory notes duly signed by the refugee, his legal representative or his sponsor.  

In 1964, the Council recommended to Member States that they contribute funds to capitalize the Refugee Loan Fund in order to enable IOM to assist a larger number of movements not fully financed by direct contributions.

The key objectives of the travel loan program are:​

• To reduce overall host country resettlement costs and thereby allow more refugees to be served than under a system of forfeitable subsidies.
• To strengthen the refugees’ determination to make a success of their migration through financial participation in making repayments against their debt.
• To help refugees establish their credit worthiness which maximizes their chances of success and contribution to the greater US economy.
• To serve as a protection tool against abusive and predatory lending markets taking advantage of borrowers without credit worthiness.
• Credit reporting increases recoveries by ~18% than if not credit reported. 
• Refugee credit scores generally improve over time, and refugees who pay off their IOM travel loans tend to have distinctly higher credit scores than refugees who do not. 
• Refugees ‘stretch out’ their loan repayments without penalty as they can afford to repay. 
• Refugees with superior credit scores achieve rates of home ownership above the national average. 

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State Department issues travel warning to American diplomats

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US State Department Issues Updated Travel Guidance for Israel, the West Bank and Gaza

T he U.S. State Department has issued an updated travel advisory for Israel, the West Bank and Gaza amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

As of Thursday, Americans are advised to reconsider travel to Israel and the West Bank due to terrorism and civil unrest and avoid travel to Gaza entirely due to terrorism and armed conflict.

"The security situation remains unpredictable, and U.S. citizens are reminded to remain vigilant and take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness as security incidents, including mortar and rocket fire, often take place without warning," the State Department says of the current situation in the Middle East .

U.S. government employees in Israel under Chief of Mission security responsibility are restricted from personal travel within seven miles of the Gaza demarcation line; the cities of Ashdod and Ashkelon; within 2.5 miles of the Lebanese and Syrian borders and within 1.5 miles of the Israel-Egypt border.

It's been more than six months since Hamas launched a surprise attack on southern Israel, prompting heightened travel advisories from the U.S. State Department in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza in addition to a worldwide caution for all Americans traveling abroad.

"Due to increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests, the Department of State advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution," officials warned last fall.

Travelers who do visit Israel, the West Bank or Gaza this spring are advised to avoid demonstrations or crowds, maintain a high level of situational awareness, exercise caution, check the most recent Embassy alerts, obtain travel medical insurance and enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive fast alerts and make it easier to be located in the event of an emergency.

After suspending operations last fall, major U.S. airlines are resuming service to Israel. United Airlines restarted service between Newark and Tel Aviv last month and Delta Air Lines will follow suit with service from New York's JFK to Tel Aviv on June 7.

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The U.S. issues new travel guidelines, warning that Iran will avenge the killings of senior commanders.

The State Department has barred its employees from traveling to large parts of Israel. Iran has repeatedly vowed to strike back over the deadly bombing this month of an Iranian Embassy complex in Syria.

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By Liam Stack and Eric Schmitt

• April 12, 2024

Several countries including the United States have issued new travel guidelines for Israel and the surrounding region, as the Israeli military said its forces were “highly alert” for a possible Iranian strike in retaliation for the killings of several commanders.

Iran has repeatedly vowed to strike back at Israel over the bombing of an Iranian Embassy complex in Damascus, Syria, this month that killed three generals and four other military officers. An American official said on Friday that Washington expects an attack by Iran against Israel that would be bigger than recent attacks in the long shadow war between the two countries, but not so big that it would draw the United States into war. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The U.S. State Department on Thursday barred its employees from traveling to large parts of Israel, the first time the U.S. government had restricted the movement of its employees in this way since the war in Gaza began more than six months ago.

On Thursday, Britain told its citizens that they “should consider leaving” Israel and the Palestinian territories “if it is safe to do so.” On Friday, India told its citizens “not to travel to Iran or Israel till further notice,” while France advised people not to travel to Israel, Iran or Lebanon and evacuated the families of French diplomats from Iran.

Asked about the U.S. travel warning , Matthew Miller, the State Department spokesman, said at a news briefing Thursday: “We have seen Iran making public threats against Israel in the past few days.” He declined to provide details about any specific information that prompted the warning.

The new guidelines bar U.S. government employees and their families from traveling to locations outside the Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Beersheba metropolitan areas “out of an abundance of caution” until further notice. The State Department said U.S. personnel could move among those areas for personal travel.

The top American military commander for the Middle East, Gen. Michael E. Kurilla, traveled to Israel to coordinate a response to possible Iranian retaliation, U.S. officials said.

“Our enemies think that they will divide Israel and the United States,” the Israeli defense minister, Yoav Gallant, said in a statement on Friday after meeting with General Kurilla. “They are connecting us and are strengthening the relationship between us.”

If Iran attacks, he added, “we will know how to respond.”

On Thursday, the Israeli military’s chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said that the armed forces were “highly alert and prepared” for any action Iran might take, even as the timing and scale of any response remained unclear. Analysts say that Tehran, which has long used a network of proxy forces to project power across the Middle East, wants to avoid igniting a full-fledged war that could drag in the United States and threaten the survival of Iran’s regime.

“For years, and even more so during the war, Iran has been financing, directing and arming its proxies — in Lebanon, Gaza, Syria, Iraq and Yemen — to attack the state of Israel,” he said. “An attack from Iranian territory would be clear evidence of Iran’s intentions to escalate the Middle East and stop hiding behind the proxies.”

Liam Stack is a Times reporter covering the Israel-Hamas war from Jerusalem. More about Liam Stack

Eric Schmitt is a national security correspondent for The Times, focusing on U.S. military affairs and counterterrorism issues overseas, topics he has reported on for more than three decades. More about Eric Schmitt

Our Coverage of the Israel-Hamas War

News and Analysis

Britain, the United States, France and other allies of Israel have voiced their anger over the death toll in Gaza, but when Iran launched a missile barrage at Israel, they set it aside . At least for the moment.

Israeli settlers fatally shot two Palestinians in the West Bank , according to Israeli and Palestinian officials, as tensions  continued to spike in the Israeli-occupied territory.

Ruth Patir, the artist representing Israel at the Venice Biennale, said she wouldn’t open her show in the national pavilion  until Israel and Hamas reach “a cease-fire and hostage release agreement.”

Mobilizing the American Left: As the death toll in Gaza climbed, the pro-Palestinian movement grew into a powerful, if disjointed, political force in the United States . Democrats are feeling the pressure.

Riding Rage Over Israel: Jackson Hinkle’s incendiary commentary  has generated over two million new followers on X since October — a surge that some researchers say is aided by inauthentic accounts by the online celebrity.

Psychedelics and Trauma: Thousands of festival-goers were using mind-altering substances when Hamas-led fighters attacked on Oct 7. Now, scientists are studying the effects of such drugs at a moment of trauma .

Turmoil at J Street: The war in Gaza has raised serious concerns within the Jewish political advocacy group about its ability to hold a middle position  without being pulled apart by forces on the right and the left.