We are thrilled to announce that the San Francisco Foundation has funded a new $500,000 loan from the Bay Area Community Impact Fund to Mission Asset Fund. They will use our loan to help individuals offset costly government immigration fees. This support is especially important right now as families and communities are facing increased economic challenges and job uncertainty navigating the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Formed in 2007, Mission Asset Fund provides loans to people with lower incomes so they can build credit, grow businesses and incomes, and pay for immigration filing fees. This allows clients to avoid so-called “payday lenders” that charge hefty interest rates.
In 2017, as the federal crackdown on immigrants intensified, Mission Asset Fund launched a set of loans to help immigrant individuals pay for fees related to citizenship and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) applications. If the immigration loan application is approved, Mission Asset Fund funds the loan within a week (with a check made out to the Department of Homeland Security), which allows the borrower to quickly include a check with their U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services application.
In 2019, Mission Asset Fund provided more than 550 immigration loans. In the next four years, it aims to provide $1.5 million in loans to nearly 2,000 borrowers.
In partnership with our generous Bay Area Community Impact Fund donors, we are proud to invest in Mission Asset Fund.
