• APS is intended to support Afghan parolees allocated to an affiliate, as well as those who may seek support post-arrival (i.e., “walk-ins”).
• Parolees served under the APS Program will be subject to the same placement restrictions as refugees and SIVs.
• Given the expected magnitude of arrivals combined with the short timeframe, agencies participating in APS will be allowed to require U.S. ties to provide housing in order to serve an APS case at an affiliate in an impacted location that does not have adequate housing capacity. If a U.S. tie cannot provide housing, the PA will be allowed to report another U.S. tie, self-select placement from a list of locations, or allow the RA to place the case somewhere else in their network. Agencies should consider all options, including temporary and privately offered housing.

• An initial 30-day period that can be extended up to 90-days after arrival should more than 30 days be required to deliver the initial relocation support services.
• The APS service period begins the date of arrival at the final destination or the date of assurance for walk-in cases.

• Parolees are currently not eligible for public benefit programs, including public cash assistance programs (RCA or TANF), medical assistance (RMA or Medicaid, with some exceptions), SNAP, and SSI.  Nor are they currently eligible for the R&P Program or ORR-funded programs such as Matching Grant, Refugee Support Services, or Preferred Communities.
• Note that parolees will be assisted to apply for employment authorization while on base upon arrival into the United States, and USCIS intends to adjudicate those applications in an expedited fashion, with the goal of ordering the EAD card before parolees depart to final destination. Parolees who choose to leave the base prior to completion of this process and travel to final destination of their own accord should be treated as walk-ins and will need assistance in filing form I-765 for employment authorization.
• The per capita amount of $2,275 includes a breakdown of $1,225 for direct assistance and $1,050 for administrative costs.
• Initial relocation support services under the APS will be broadly similar to the core services provided under R&P, including but not limited to:
• airport reception, as applicable
• safe and appropriate housing, as noted below
• adequate food supplies
• seasonal clothing, as needed
• pocket money for each adult
• material needs support
• assistance in accessing health services, as possible
• assistance with enrollment in services appropriate to their personal circumstances, as eligible
• assistance with enrollment in school for school-aged minors
• cultural orientation, and
• assistance with accessing legal services to apply for adjustment of status.
• Support services should be provided with appropriate language interpretation by an individual who is not associated with the parolee and promotes gender equality.

• During this unprecedented housing challenge, PRM welcomes creative housing solutions to support the pace of local arrivals while ensuring safe and sanitary housing for new arrivals. For example, allowable temporary housing options could include faith-based facilities, private housing arrangements, or shared housing arrangements. All temporary housing options should be properly vetted to ensure they are safe and appropriate to the circumstances of the arriving case (e.g., immediate families should be kept together, single cases should not be asked to share a room with unrelated cases of the opposite gender, etc.).

• As APS Program funding is intended to supplement local and national management private resources, applicants should partner effectively with the community and private sector to leverage the high level of support being offered to Afghan arrivals.  
• Although Afghan parolees started arriving in the United States as early as August 20, PRM will not reimburse agencies for any funds spent prior to receiving formal authorization (expected September 1^st). Starting on the date of formal authorization to the agency, agencies may provide APS services to parolees still in their APS period, even if the parolee arrived prior to the date of program authorization, and PRM will reimburse those costs. For costs incurred prior to the date of formal authorization to the agency, agencies must rely on private, or other non-federal resources. PRM is aware of significant efforts to coalesce private support for this purpose, and will ensure agencies are made aware as soon as any such funding becomes available, however agencies should not wait, and should continue to develop their own resources as well to the maximum extent possible.

• Local affiliates must consult with their State Refugee Coordinator and other required stakeholders regarding plans to participate in the APS Program. While the constrained timeframe for this proposal means that PRM will not require that consultations occur prior to proposal submission, particularly given the emergency nature of this situation, affiliates must make every effort to consult with the SRC as soon as possible. Consultations with the SRC on planned APS placements should occur no later than September 1^st, and other stakeholders as soon as time and availability permit. APS program planning and arrivals should also be included as an agenda item in regular quarterly consultations.