Community Refugee Sponsorship
The Community Refugee Sponsorship (CORS) category is additional and complementary to the Refugee Quota programme and Refugee Family Support category.
It is a category where New Zealand-based approved community organisations apply to partner with refugees to support their settlement in the community.
Sponsored refugees are resettled directly into the community with the support of approved community organisations.
The approved community organisations provide the support needed for these refugees over a two-year period, informed by Te Tiriti o Waitangi and supported by HOST as the umbrella organisation for the programme.
The Community Refugee Sponsorship Programme enables all New Zealanders to welcome refugees to Aotearoa. The programme supports organisations and community groups to directly engage in refugee resettlement by committing to providing financial, emotional, and practical support to help newly arrived refugees integrate into life in Aotearoa New Zealand.
HOST is the umbrella organisation for the extended pilot of the Community Refugee Sponsorship (CORS) programme.
Started in Canada in the 1970s, the Canadian community sponsorship programme has successfully resettled approximately 300,000 refugees since it began.
Today many countries such as Ireland, Australia, Argentina, Spain, and the UK have used the Canadian model to design community sponsorship programmes of their own.
Under the extended pilot of the Community Refugee Sponsorship programme in Aotearoa New Zealand, 150 refugees will be resettled by Approved Sponsors over three years (2021 – 2024).
Watch the video below for an introduction to the programme:
To find out more about the Community Refugee Sponsorship Programme and how your community can get involved, visit www.refugeesponsorship.org.nz