For more information, please contact Central Intake at 817-534-0814

Refugee & Immigration Services

Immigration Consultation Services

Low cost legal assistance is provided to qualifying individuals to apply for and obtain benefits granted by the family based immigration system. The program focus is family preservation and family reunification.

Refugee Resettlement and Employment Services

Resettlement services are provided to refugees approved for admission into the United States by the Department of State. Resettlement services encourage refugees to achieve early economic self sufficiency and promote smooth cultural integration. These services include:

Arrival preparation - apartment set up, food, clothing, and airport reception
Initial Orientation – education on American culture which covers healthcare, childcare, transportation, employment, American culture and laws, housing and safety
Post Arrival Follow-up – health screening, school enrollment, assistance with Food Stamps/Medicaid/Social Security application

Catholic Charities staff works closely with area employers to identify and meet company staffing needs and to develop job opportunities for refugees, asylees, and victims of trafficking. Job placement services include employment assessment, job orientation classes, assistance with transportation and childcare, vocational training, job search, referral and placement.

Refugee Services School Impact Program

The school impact program provides services for refugee children and their families to promote effective integration, education, and a successful transition to the United States public school system. Services include tutoring for refugee children, provide trainings to school district personnel covering issues of refugee process and cultural awareness, interpreters free of charge to aid in parent/teacher communication, and parenting classes for refugee parents so that they are aware of their responsibilities in the U.S. school systems, nutrition, safety, and discipline.

Unaccompanied Refugee Minor Program

The Unaccompanied Refugee Minor (URM) program serves foreign born children from war-torn countries who have arrived in the United states without a parent or an adult caregiver. They are refugees, asylees, or victims of trafficking in their teens. They all have incredible stories of faith, determination and survival. The URM program partners with foster families to provide children with a safe, nurturing, culturally sensitive environment that equips and empowers them to reach their full potential. Services are designed to meet the needs of each unaccompanied refugee minor and may include tutoring, mentoring, independent living skills training, cultural activities, legal assistance, mental health services, intensive case management and education/ESL classes. Training, support groups and a monthly stipend are provided to assist foster parents in the care and development of the child. If you are interested in learning more about refugee foster care, call us today at 817-680-1744 or e-mail Jennifer Anderson.

Refugee Educational Services

English as a second language (ESL) classes are provided to immigrants and refugees to gain the language skills necessary to become self sufficient in the United States. Classes are located in neighborhoods throughout Tarrant County and specialized ESL classes are available in literacy, vocational ESL and citizenship preparation.

Translation and Interpreter Network (TIN)

Catholic Charities provides professional, on-site interpretation and document translation services in more than seventy languages. The network also offers training for bilingual personnel, seminars for hospitals, courts, school districts, and other service providers on the use of trained interpreters. All interpreters must pass a language proficiency exam prior to an invitation to training. The network also provides required continuing education courses throughout the year. Interpreters generally work on a contract basis and are assigned to appointment throughout the DFW metroplex.

Languages available for interpretation or translation:

Albanian, Arabic, Assyrian, Burmese, Bosnian, Chinese Cantonese, Chinese Mandarin, Czech, Dari, Dinka, Ewe, Farsi, Fulani French, Gujarati, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Kizugi Korean, Kurdish, Laotian, Lingala, Macedonian, Mandarin, Marathi, Mina, Persian, Portuguese Brazil, Portuguese Angola, Pakistani, Punjabi, Russian, Rajastani Servo-Croatian, Somali, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Tagolog, Taiwanese, Turkish, Urdu, Uzbeki, Vietnamese, Zande

For more information, please contact Meti Dibra at 817-920-7733 or visit our Translation and Interpreter Network (TIN) website.