Georgia Refugee Program
The State Refugee Coordinator's office coordinates resettlement agencies, job placement and Refugee Cash Assistance for newly arrived refugees across Georgia. It also explains how refugees apply for SNAP, Medicaid, TANF or RCA through Georgia Gateway or a county DFCS office.
New American Pathways
Atlanta resettlement agency offering case management, job placement, English and GED classes, immigration consultations and family violence prevention to refugees, asylees and trafficking survivors. Most services are by appointment, with walk-in hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
International Rescue Committee in Atlanta
Resettles refugees arriving in metro Atlanta and helps them find housing, enroll children in school, reach health care and start work. The office also offers low-cost immigration legal help, youth programs for ages 5 to 24, and career development for asylees and SIV holders.
Gateway Center
Downtown Atlanta's main front door for people without housing. It runs coordinated entry for the city, an engagement center with day services, and residential tracks for men including the Upward addiction-recovery program and a two-year veterans program.
The Shepherd's Inn
Shelter and residential program for up to 450 single men a day, with meals, counseling, recovery programming, job training and legal help. Arrive at the Mills Street gate early; pre-screening happens before the weekday morning intake window.
Old Savannah City Mission
Faith-based mission on Bull Street offering three hot meals a day, overnight beds, showers and clothing at no charge, plus a residential recovery program for men coming out of homelessness and addiction. A free medical clinic runs Monday afternoons.
Chatham Savannah Authority for the Homeless
The lead homelessness agency for Savannah and Chatham County. Its street outreach team meets people where they are six days a week and connects them to shelter and housing, and it operates an Access Center for triage at Union Mission's day center on Fahm Street.
Center of Hope - Augusta
Emergency shelter in Augusta with separate check-in lines for single women, women with children, men and families. Dinner is served nightly and everyone checks out at 8 a.m.; caseworker appointments can be requested by phone or online.
Garden City Gospel Mission
Men's shelter on Fenwick Street in Augusta that also runs a nine-month residential Life Development Center for men working to leave addiction. Showers are open to the public on Fridays.
Valley Rescue Mission
Columbus nonprofit with a men's transitional shelter, a women and children's shelter, 9–12 month recovery centers for men and women, and a daily hot meal for about 120 people. Shelter and recovery applicants apply online; the men's shelter takes applications by phone.
CARES Warm Line
Peer-staffed call-or-text line for anyone in Georgia who wants to talk about substance use recovery without a crisis. The parent organization trains peer recovery coaches and supports a statewide network of Recovery Community Organizations, including centers in Atlanta, Savannah and Columbus.
Georgia Crisis and Access Line (GCAL)
The state's single number for mental health and addiction emergencies and for getting into publicly funded treatment. Counselors talk people through a crisis, send mobile crisis teams, locate open detox or crisis beds anywhere in Georgia, and book urgent appointments with state-funded providers.
Georgia Legal Services Program
Nonprofit law firm handling civil cases for low-income Georgians in the 154 counties outside metro Atlanta, through regional offices around the state. Statewide intake runs through a toll-free line.
Atlanta Legal Aid Society
Free civil legal help for people in Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties who cannot afford a lawyer, with special projects for domestic violence survivors, veterans and people with disabilities. Online application is the fastest route; each county office also takes calls.
Georgia Statewide Human Trafficking Hotline
One number, answered 24/7, that reaches trained advocates and law enforcement for trafficking in Georgia. Menu options route adults to the CJCC victim advocate, foreign-born survivors to Tapestri, and trafficked youth to the Receiving Hope Center.
Wellspring Living
Residential and community programs for women and girls recovering from sexual exploitation and trafficking in metro Atlanta, including the Receiving Hope Center for youth, a women's residential program, academies with GED prep and career pathways, and post-program support.
Tapestri
Serves immigrant and refugee women, children and men who have survived domestic violence, sexual abuse or human trafficking, with advocacy, case management and referrals to housing. Tapestri does not run a shelter but is the foreign-born option on Georgia's trafficking hotline.
Georgia Cares
Statewide referral point for children and teens believed to be victims of commercial sexual exploitation. Caregivers, caseworkers and youth themselves can call to be connected with treatment and advocacy; emergencies go to 911 or the local DFCS office.
State Office of Vital Records
Issues certified Georgia birth certificates, the first document most people need before a state ID. Order online through ROVER for $25 plus $8 processing, by mail, or at a county vital records office; a physical government photo ID is required and standard processing can take up to ten weeks.
Indigent ID Card
Reduced-cost Georgia ID for people who cannot pay the normal fee. Get a voucher from an approved nonprofit Indigent Resource Provider, fill out the License/ID/Permit form online, then bring your documents to any DDS customer service center. A shelter or halfway-house letter dated within six months counts as proof of residency.
Georgia Gateway
The state's online portal for applying for SNAP, Medicaid, TANF, Refugee Cash Assistance, WIC and childcare assistance, and for the Pathways to Coverage Medicaid option for adults 19–64. Applications are available in other languages and free interpreters are offered by phone.
Georgia Statewide Domestic Violence Hotline
A 24-hour line that routes anyone in Georgia dealing with abuse to one of more than 50 local domestic violence programs. Callers can ask about emergency shelter, safety planning, or how to leave; GCADV also runs a program for incarcerated survivors.
United Way 211 Greater Atlanta
Free, confidential referral line staffed around the clock that points Atlanta-area callers to rent and utility help, food pantries, shelter beds, and other services. The team also handles web chat and a texting option for people who cannot talk.
Reentry Services - Operations Support Division
The state unit that plans release for people in Georgia prisons and follows them into the community. Pre-release staff inside GDC facilities identify needs, community coordinators in every judicial circuit link people to housing, jobs and mentors, and the Housing Resources unit runs the THOR and Reentry Partnership Housing beds.
GA RYSE Independent Living Program (Chafee)
DFCS's program for teens and young adults who spent at least six months in Georgia foster care after age 14. An Independent Living Specialist enrolls the youth, builds a transitional living plan, and opens doors to Chafee funds, Education and Training Vouchers, and post-foster-care support up to age 21.
National lines that work in Georgia
Lifeline free phone program
Free or discounted phone and service for people on Medicaid, SNAP, SSI, or low income. Apply online or through a carrier.
SAMHSA National Helpline
Free, confidential treatment referral for substance use and mental health. Finds local programs that take your insurance or none.
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Call or text 988 for any mental health or substance use crisis. Available to anyone in any program.
National Domestic Violence Hotline
24/7 confidential help for anyone affected by domestic violence. Advocates connect you to local shelters and legal help.
National Human Trafficking Hotline
24/7 confidential hotline for survivors of trafficking and people who suspect it. Connects to vetted local services.