Individual Development Accounts

The Individual Development Accounts (IDA) program at Global Alliance Solutions Foundation offers support that encompasses financial planning, training and matching savings accounts, helping to ensure a stable financial future. Our program works to improve the ability of low-income refugees to achieve financial stability through increased understanding and participation in America’s banking system. 

We combine financial education, funding, and career support (referring to the Refugee Career Pathways Program), to increase the purchase of major assets like homes and cars by providing various funding opportunities while helping clients who are working toward self-sufficiency.

Services Highlights

• Case management
• Matched savings accounts
• Education & career training
• Basic financial literacy
• Understanding budgeting, saving and credit
• Introduction to the American financial system
• Financial planning 
• Specialized asset training
• Funding access
• Referral services
• Home purchase funding
• Small business development (entrepreneurial) funding
• Post secondary education or training funding
• Automobile purchase funding (for employment purposes)

Program Overview

Individual Development Accounts (IDA) are matched savings accounts designed to help refugees save for a specific purchase. Under the Global Alliance Solutions Foundation (GASF) IDA program, the matching funds, together with the refugee’s own savings from their employment, are available for purchasing one of four savings goals:

• Home purchase
• Small business development (entrepreneurial)
• Post secondary education or training (including college, specific certifications, licensing or apprenticeship programs)
• Automobile (for employment purposes)
  

Individual Development Accounts grantees are provided matched savings accounts to assist refugees whose annual income is less than 200 percent of the poverty level and whose assets, exclusive of a personal residence and one vehicle, are less than $10,000 in value. Grantees provide matches of up to $1 for every $1 deposited by a refugee in a savings account. The total match amount provided may not exceed $2,000 for individuals or $4,000 for households. Payment from GASF is made directly to the vendor of service not the individual participant. Upon enrolling in an IDA program, a refugee signs a savings plan agreement which specifies the savings goal, the match rate, and the amount the refugee will save each month.

GASF provides basic financial training to help participants understand the American financial system, budgeting, saving and credit. In addition, refugees receive training focused on specific savings goals (Specific Asset Training). The specialized training ensures that refugees understand how to manage their assets.

Our goals are established along with the participant goals and include working together to improve the ability of low-income refugees to save, promote participation in banking, assist in education and career training (often referring to Refugee Career Pathways Program), increase home ownership, provide access to funding while working toward self-sufficiency and financial stability.

ELIGIBILITY: Participants in this program must have been in the US for less than 5 years, NOT a citizen, and have status as Refugee, Asylee, Paroled Refugee/Asylee, or other prescribed group noted under the Office of Refugee Resettlement regulations. Participants are only eligible to receive these funds once from this federal program per family or through any provider (cannot obtain funds from different agencies).

FUNDING: This program is funded through the Administration for Children & Families (ACF), Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR)