Joanna Rubinstein

Joanna Rubinstein served as chair of Sweden for the U.N. High Commission for Refugees, a leadership role within the Swedish fundraising and advocacy arm of the United Nations refugee agency. Prior to that role, she had a career spanning philanthropy and international development, with connections to global health and humanitarian organizations.

Private Island Visit

Newly unsealed documents released in early February 2026 revealed that Rubinstein and her family had visited Jeffrey Epstein on his private island — Little Saint James in the U.S. Virgin Islands — in 2012. Epstein’s island was later identified as a central location of his alleged sex trafficking operation, and visits to the island by prominent figures have drawn particular scrutiny during the document release process.

The visit occurred four years after Epstein’s 2008 conviction in Florida for soliciting a minor. Little Saint James, which Epstein purchased in 1998, became one of several properties named in civil and federal proceedings related to his conduct.

Resignation

Rubinstein resigned as chair of Sweden for the U.N. High Commission for Refugees following the public disclosure of the island visit. She did not offer a detailed public statement about the nature of her relationship with Epstein or the circumstances of the 2012 trip. The U.N. High Commission for Refugees is the world’s principal refugee agency; its Swedish branch focuses on fundraising and awareness campaigns.

Her case was among several announced in the same week in February 2026, alongside that of former French culture minister Jack Lang, as international institutions moved to limit reputational damage from the ongoing document releases.

Documents

Primary-source records that reference Joanna Rubinstein. Inclusion in these documents is not, by itself, evidence of wrongdoing; Rubinstein has said that what has since emerged about the abuse is “appalling” and that she “strongly distance[s]” herself from it.

• DOJ Epstein Files (EFTA release portal) — Rubinstein is referenced in records among the Epstein files released by the Department of Justice. As reported by Anadolu Agency, France 24, and the Swedish newspaper Expressen, the material includes a December 26, 2012 email in which Rubinstein thanked Epstein for “a wonderful lunch and an afternoon in paradise” following a family visit to his private island, Little St. James. The disclosure prompted her resignation as chair of Sweden for the UNHCR.