in effect
This is Executive Order 14204, signed February 7, 2025, a directive from the President to federal agencies. It responds to South Africa’s Expropriation Act 13 of 2024 and to South African foreign-policy actions the order describes as harmful to the United States. It sets U.S. policy to withhold aid from South Africa and to help resettle certain South Africans as refugees.
The order sets a policy that, as long as the described practices continue, the U.S. will not provide aid or assistance to South Africa. It directs all executive departments and agencies, including USAID, to halt foreign aid and assistance to South Africa “to the maximum extent allowed by law,” while allowing each agency head discretion to permit specific aid they deem necessary or appropriate. It also directs the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security to prioritize humanitarian relief — including admission and resettlement through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program — for Afrikaners the order describes as victims of racial discrimination, and to submit a resettlement plan to the President. The order sets no dollar figures or fixed deadlines, and it states it must be carried out consistent with existing law and available funding. It creates no legal rights enforceable against the U.S. government.
The government of South Africa and any programs receiving U.S. foreign aid or assistance there are directly targeted by the aid halt. Afrikaners in South Africa are identified as the intended beneficiaries of the prioritized refugee resettlement pathway. U.S. federal agencies — especially USAID, the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security — carry out the directives.