State Spending

The 2025-26 Enacted Budget Financial Plan indicates the State plans to spend $4.3 billion between State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2022-23 through SFY 2026-27 for emergency spending related to people seeking asylum in the United States. The FY 2027 Executive Budget provides no new appropriations for asylum seeker assistance, instead relying on the expenditure of previously allocated funds to support New York City’s ongoing humanitarian response.

Emergency spending for asylum seekers totaled $2.65 billion through March 31, 2026.

Figure 1 – State Spending by Agency
(through month ending)

Note: Spending from April 1, 2023 through March 31, 2026.

Figure 2 – State Spending by Activity 
(through month ending)

Note: All other includes: Health Care & Related Services, Security, Translation, Transportation and General Services. Spending from April 1, 2023 through March 31, 2026.

New York City Spending 

Through March 31, 2026, the City of New York had recorded expenditures of $1.47 billion in Fiscal Year (FY) 2023, $3.75 billion in FY 2024, $3.02 billion in FY 2025 and $1.10 billion in FY 2026. However, FY 2026 expenses are not yet final. The largest cumulative spending is for payments to the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) for emergency shelter costs, followed by NYC Health + Hospitals (H+H), which led the operation of the Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Centers (HERRCs). By FY 2026, costs shifted predominantly to DHS as the City closed multiple HERRCs.

The City updated its cost projections in its February 2026 Financial Plan to $1.5 billion for FY 2026, $1.2 billion in FY 2027, and $500 million annually in FY 2028, FY 2029 and FY 2030, anticipating a continued decline in the number of people in the City's care.

Figure 3 – New York City Asylum Seeker Expenses by Agency, FY 2023, FY 2024, FY 2025 and FY 2026
(through March 31, 2026)

Note: New York City fiscal year is from July 1 to June 30.

* FY 2026 expenses have not yet been finalized.

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