Do refugees increase local crime rates?

Some citizens worry that hosting refugees in their countries will lead to an uptick in crime rates. The evidence base to date indicates that such fears are unwarranted.

When President Trump suddenly halted refugee resettlement in 2017, for example, there was no impact on property or violent crime. Data from 2006-14 similarly finds no link between refugee settlement in the U.S. and local crime rates.

In fact, local residents who are worried about crime may actually benefit from accepting more refugees. Research from Turkey finds that, if anything, Syrian refugees were less likely to commit a crime than natives, possibly due to the risk of deportation.