US funding for Tibetan exile programmes has fallen sharply under the Trump administration's sweeping foreign aid cuts, though a portion has since been reinstated following direct discussions with American officials, Sikyong Penpa Tsering, the elected leader of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), said in an exclusive interview in Washington on 13 November 2026. Tsering confirmed his administration had recovered $6.8 million of previously allocated support, even as broader fiscal uncertainty continues to cloud Tibetan exile programmes.

What Was Cut and What Was Recovered

Prior to the aid reductions, approximately $12 million had been allocated for the Central Tibetan Administration and Tibetan communities in exile, Tsering said. A separate $2 million flowed through a refugee and migration programme covering health-related needs.

Both streams were affected: the refugee and migration allocation was cut entirely, and broader foreign assistance was suspended as part of Washington's restructuring. However, Tsering said his administration had managed to secure the return of $6.8 million from last year's allocation. 'We managed to get back 6.8 million from last year,' he said. The remaining $5 million from the principal allocation had been subject to a rescission, with any further decision depending on the next budget cycle.

Funding Timeline and Upcoming Deadlines

Tsering said proposals for a fresh funding round were due by 18 November. Assistance previously linked to the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years had been redistributed over a longer period, he explained, with officials indicating that extensions would also be available under the 2026 budget. The compressed and overlapping timelines reflect the administrative turbulence that has followed Washington's aid overhaul.

A further $10 million had been separately designated for programmes benefiting Tibetans inside Tibet — funds not managed directly by the CTA but channelled through other implementing organisations. Tsering acknowledged that operationalising those programmes had become increasingly difficult since 2018, and their implementation was now further complicated by the closure of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which had previously administered several of these international assistance streams.

USAID Closure Adds Institutional Uncertainty

The financial uncertainty has been compounded by structural changes inside the State Department and the shuttering of USAID. Tsering said he had held an extended meeting with State Department leadership and programme officials to understand which offices would now oversee Tibetan initiatives, how funds would be distributed, and what would happen to existing commitments. 'There is another separate 10 million for Tibetans inside Tibet,' he noted, flagging the implementation challenge as a core unresolved issue.

India Cited as 'Biggest Support'

Tsering was careful to place Washington's role within a broader support structure. He said India had provided essential assistance in education, rehabilitation, and humanitarian services to Tibetan exile communities over decades, describing New Delhi's backing as going 'far beyond what could be measured by a single budget line.' 'Indian government is our biggest support,' he said directly.

His appeal in Washington was also explicitly political. Tibetan leaders, he argued, had long maintained that supporting a nonviolent movement was comparatively inexpensive. 'It costs only a few millions to support nonviolence,' he said, referencing his administration's preference for a negotiated settlement with Beijing over confrontation. While Tsering expressed cautious hope that Washington would sustain assistance, he acknowledged that recovering every dollar of earlier allocations would be difficult given the administration's stated focus on cost reduction.

The Central Tibetan Administration, headquartered in Dharamsala, India, represents Tibetan exile communities worldwide and maintains contact with foreign governments and legislators on humanitarian and cultural matters. With a critical funding deadline approaching and the institutional architecture of US foreign assistance still in flux, the coming weeks will be consequential for the CTA's programme continuity.