E.g., 04/23/2024
E.g., 04/23/2024
North America

North America

United States
Canada
Mexico

North America is a dynamic migration region, with the United States home to more immigrants than any other country in the world, the Mexico-U.S. corridor the globe's top migration corridor, and Canada a leading destination for migrants. Research collected here focuses on everything from visa policy and border management to immigrant integration, national identity, the demographics of immigrants in the region and their educational and workforce outcomes, and ways to more effectively use migration policy as a lever for national and regional competitiveness.

Graphic image of man's hand touching screen with word skills
Commentaries

Canada's New Tech Talent Strategy Takes Aim at High-Skilled Immigrants in the United States

Canada’s Tech Talent Strategy is highly unusual for its explicit targeting of visa holders in another country. Opening a dedicated stream specifically for high-skilled immigrants in the United States who hold an H-1B visa is the latest salvo in a growing global competition for talent—one in which some countries are racing ahead of the United States in terms of policy dynamism, as this commentary explores.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other leaders at the 2022 Summit of the Americas
Commentaries

The Los Angeles Declaration Could Represent a Big Step for Real Migration Cooperation across the Americas

The Los Angeles Agreement on Migration and Protection signed by leaders from 20 countries across the Western Hemisphere at the 2022 Summit of the Americas marks a significant step forward in creating a common language and a coherent set of ideas for more cooperatively managing migration movements across a region that has seen very significant mobility in recent years, as this commentary explains.

Recent Activity

Coverthumb_EL Data Guide
Policy Briefs
May 2018
A Guide to Finding and Understanding English Learner Data
By  Julie Sugarman
A woman walks alongside a train in Mexico.
Articles
May 30, 2018
In Search of Safety, Growing Numbers of Women Flee Central America
By Jeffrey Hallock, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, and Michael Fix
A boy peers through fencing at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Articles
May 24, 2018
Family Separation and “Zero-Tolerance” Policies Rolled Out to Stem Unwanted Migrants, But May Face Challenges
By Muzaffar Chishti and Jessica Bolter
Chinese students
Articles
May 9, 2018
International Students in the United States
By Jie Zong and Jeanne Batalova
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Multimedia
May 8, 2018
The Changing Landscape of Interior Immigration Enforcement Under Trump
Eloy Detention Center
Articles
May 2, 2018
Profiting from Enforcement: The Role of Private Prisons in U.S. Immigration Detention
By Livia Luan
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Reports
May 2018
Revving Up the Deportation Machinery: Enforcement under Trump and the Pushback
By  Randy Capps, Muzaffar Chishti, Julia Gelatt, Jessica Bolter and Ariel G. Ruiz Soto
Troops at the border
Articles
April 25, 2018
National Guard Heads to Southern Border Amid Differing Reality from Earlier Deployments
By Muzaffar Chishti, Sarah Pierce, and Austin Rose

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Fact Sheets
October 2005
United States-Canada-Mexico Fact Sheet on Trade and Migration
By  Deborah W. Meyers
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Reports
September 2005
Education and Immigrant Integration in the United States and Canada
By  Philippa Strum and David Biette
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Policy Briefs
September 2005
Reflections on Restoring Integrity to the United States Immigration System: A Personal Vision
By  Demetrios G. Papademetriou
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Reports
September 2005
The New Demography of America's Schools
By  Randy Capps, Michael Fix, Julie Murray and Jeffrey S. Passel
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Reports
August 2005
Secure Borders, Open Doors: Visa Procedures in the Post-September 11 Era
By  Demetrios G. Papademetriou, Betsy Cooper and Stephen Yale-Loehr
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Policy Briefs
August 2005
Lessons From The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986
By  Betsy Cooper and Kevin O'Neil
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Reports
June 2005
One Face at The Border: Behind the Slogan
By  Deborah W. Meyers
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Reports
June 2005
Real Challenges for Virtual Borders: The Implementation of US-VISIT
By  Rey Koslowski

Pages

Policy Beat
September 12, 2013
State Access to Federal Immigration Data Stirs New Controversy in Debate over Voting Rights

Iowa has just become the third state to gain access to federal SAVE immigration data for the purpose of removing noncitizens from its voter lists. This practice, which signifies a major departure from the system's intended purposes, comes amid renewed focus over voting rights. This article explores the recent surge in state activism regarding the possibility of noncitizen voting and also examines the current leadership vacuum in the Department of Homeland Security, new guidance for immigration benefits for same-sex couples, and more.

Feature
September 4, 2013
Integrating Immigrant Youth: Transatlantic Perspectives

This article examines common challenges and factors influencing the development of local labor-market integration initiatives targeting immigrant youth, based on four city case studies conducted in the United States and the European Union.

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Spotlight
August 21, 2013
Indian Immigrants in the United States

In 2011, India was the third largest country of origin for immigrants in the United States, after Mexico and China. The close to 1.9 million Indian immigrants in the United States accounted for almost 5 percent of the country’s total foreign-born population of 40.4 million. This article examines the latest data on Indian immigrants in the United States, including population size, geographic distribution, admission categories, and demographic and socioeconomic characteristics.

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Spotlight
July 25, 2013
Limited English Proficient Population of the United States in 2011

In 2011, there were 25.3 million Limited English Proficient (LEP) individuals residing in the United States, or roughly 9 percent of the nation's population ages 5 and older. Although most LEP individuals were foreign born, nearly one-fifth of this population was native born, about three-quarters of whom were children ages 5 to 17. This article provides a demographic and socioeconomic profile of LEP individuals residing in the United States, including the population's size, geographic distribution, and demographic and socioeconomic characteristics.

Policy Beat
July 3, 2013
Now that the Senate Has Passed Landmark Immigration Legislation, All Eyes Are on the House

On June 27, the U.S. Senate passed legislation to overhaul the U.S. immigration system on a scale not seen in decades. Despite this major breakthrough, it is clear that immigration reform faces an uphill battle in the House of Representatives, where the dynamics are much different than in the Senate. This article assesses the prospects for immigration reform in the House, explores provisions of the Senate bill, the implications for U.S. immigration policy of the Supreme Court's recent ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act, and more.

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Recent Activity

Articles
September 3, 2020

The Digital Divide Hits U.S. Immigrant Households Disproportionately during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the effects of the so-called digital divide for U.S. immigrants and other groups with reduced online connectivity. Internet access and the skills to navigate digital environments have become even more critical for work, education, and health care during the public-health crisis, yet immigrants make up a disproportionately large share of U.S. residents unable to take advantage of these tools.

Reports
September 2020

Immigration Enforcement and the Mental Health of Latino High School Students

This study explores the relationship between immigration enforcement and the mental health of Latino high school students, finding that majorities surveyed in both high- and low-enforcement environments reported fear that someone close to them could be deported, with resulting symptoms of conditions such as depression and PTSD. The report provides examples of how schools are responding to support the mental health and engagement of these students.

Video, Audio, Webinars
August 26, 2020

Excluding Millions: How Trump Administration Changes to the Decennial Census Could Leave Out U.S. Citizens and Immigrants

This conversation, featuring a former U.S. Census Bureau director and other top experts, examines how the many challenges facing the 2020 Census could affect the count and representation of immigrant communities, the difficulties inherent in data matching to determine legal status, and the legal and constitutional issues surrounding the administration’s actions.

Articles
August 12, 2020

Haitian Immigrants in the United States

The United States is the top global destination for Haitian migrants, who left Haiti in the wake of political instability and a series of natural disasters, including a 2010 earthquake that devastated the country. Haitian immigrants in the United States contribute an important flow of remittances to their country of origin, which is the second largest in the world as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP). Remittances to Haiti have increased nearly sixfold since 2000.

Reports
July 2020

Dismantling and Reconstructing the U.S. Immigration System: A Catalog of Changes under the Trump Presidency

Now into its fourth year, the Trump administration has reshaped the U.S. immigration system in ways big and small via presidential proclamations, policy guidance, and regulatory change. This report offers a catalog of the more than 400 administrative changes undertaken in areas such as immigration enforcement, humanitarian admissions, DACA, and visa processing—including a look at measures put in places since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Articles
July 28, 2020

Impending USCIS Furloughs Will Contribute to a Historic Drop in U.S. Immigration Levels

A looming furlough of 70 percent of staff at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services could halt processing for tens of thousands of green cards, citizenship applications, and other immigrant benefits each month it is in effect. Alongside the long list of Trump administration policies slowing immigration to the United States before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, this could contribute to a precipitous—and likely historic—decline in new arrivals to the United States.

Commentaries
July 2020

Millions of U.S. Citizens Could Be Excluded under Trump Plan to Remove Unauthorized Immigrants from Census Data

The Trump administration's plan to exclude unauthorized immigrants from the 2020 Census data used to reapportion 435 congressional seats among the 50 states could misclassify as many as 20 million U.S. citizens, as the result of expected data-matching errors. The effects of this exclusion could be most pronounced in low-income urban and rural communities, reducing their voting power relative to more affluent ones, as this commentary explains.

Articles
June 25, 2020

Mientras Crece el Movimiento para Desfinanciar a la Policía en EUA, el Gasto y las Prácticas de las Autoridades de Inmigración también se Someten a Escrutinio

Los llamados de los activistas a "desbancar a la policía", a raíz de una serie de encuentros mortales para los miembros de la comunidad negra, hacen eco de las demandas anteriores de "abolir el ICE" y reflejar una crítica más amplia de los sistemas de aplicación percibidos como demasiado agresivo.

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