E.g., 04/24/2024
E.g., 04/24/2024
United States

United States

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Historically a nation of immigrants, the United States is home to nearly 45 million immigrants, who represent 13.7 percent of the total population and play a key role in the economic, civic, and cultural life of the country. The research collected here covers many facets of immigration to the United States, by the numbers and how immigrants fare in the country's classrooms and workplaces, the policies and regulations that shape the admission of new immigrants, the enforcement programs and polices in place at U.S. borders and within the interior, and integration policies and efforts taking place in local communities, in states, and at the federal level.

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Reports

How Immigrants and Their U.S.-Born Children Fit into the Future U.S. Labor Market

The level of education and training expected of workers in the United States has increased considerably in recent decades, and this trend looks set to continue. This report explores the forces driving this change and how the education levels of immigrant-origin and other workers compare to those likely to be needed in the future U.S. workforce, overall and in key occupational groups.

A naturalization ceremony at the White House.
Articles

Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States

Immigration touches on many facets of life in the United States. Get the facts with this useful resource, which compiles in one place answers to some of the most often-asked questions about immigration and immigrants in the United States now and historically. This article contains essential data on the immigrant population, immigration levels, trends in immigration enforcement, and much more.

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Policy Briefs

A New Way Forward for Employment-Based Immigration: The Bridge Visa

U.S. employment-based visa policies, last updated in 1990, are not aligned with the country’s current and future labor market needs. This policy brief outlines MPI’s proposal for a new visa pathway that could help the United States better leverage immigration to meet its labor market needs, boost protections for both U.S.- and foreign-born workers, and flexibly adapt to future economic and demographic changes.

President Joe Biden signs an executive order.
Articles

Biden at the Three-Year Mark: The Most Active Immigration Presidency Yet Is Mired in Border Crisis Narrative

In three years, President Joe Biden has surpassed the number of immigration-focused executive actions taken by the Trump administration throughout its entire four-year term, making his the most active U.S. presidency ever on immigration. Yet the Biden administration has been repeatedly accused of inaction at the U.S.-Mexico border, where record levels of migrant encounters have occurred. This article reviews the Biden track record on immigration.

Recent Activity

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Fact Sheets
January 2016
A Profile of U.S. Children with Unauthorized Immigrant Parents
By  Randy Capps, Michael Fix and Jie Zong
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Fact Sheets
January 2016
Trends in Unaccompanied Child and Family Migration from Central America
By  Marc R. Rosenblum and Isabel Ball
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Articles
January 6, 2016
Immigrants from Asia in the United States
By Jie Zong and Jeanne Batalova
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Multimedia
December 17, 2015
Using Data to Improve Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Services for Immigrants and Refugees
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Fact Sheets
April 2016
Immigrants and WIOA Services: Comparison of Sociodemographic Characteristics of Native- and Foreign-Born Adults in the United States
By  Margie McHugh and Madeleine Morawski
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Articles
December 16, 2015
White House Uses Many Levers of Power to Effect Change as Obama and Congress Remain Deadlocked on Immigration
By Sarah Pierce
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Multimedia
December 15, 2015
Leadership Visions: A Discussion with Mexican Foreign Minister Claudia Ruiz-Massieu
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Articles
December 14, 2015
Governments Increasingly Restrict Citizenship
By Natalia Banulescu-Bogdan

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Policy Beat
August 16, 2010
Federal Judge Blocks Key Provisions of Arizona Law, Setting Stage for Long Legal Battle

MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron break down the injunction against Arizona's immigration law and report on the debate over birthright citizenship, the passage of a $600 million border security bill, and more.

Spotlight
July 22, 2010
Taiwanese Immigrants in the United States

Over three-quarters of Taiwanese immigrants own their home, and almost as many hold a bachelor's degree or higher. MPI's Serena Yi-Ying Lin examines the population's size, geographic distribution, and socioeconomic characteristics.

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Policy Beat
July 15, 2010
Focus Remains on Arizona as Justice Department Files Lawsuit against SB 1070
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on the Justice Department's suit against Arizona's newest immigration law and the Supreme Court's decision to hear a case challenging the 2007 Legal Arizona Workers Act. Also in this edition: Haitian nationals get more time to file for Temporary Protected Status, the House approves $701 million for border security measures, Tennessee enacts an immigration enforcement bill, and more.
Policy Beat
June 15, 2010
Political Considerations Surround Decision to Deploy National Guard to Southwest Border

MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on President Barack Obama's decision to send 1,200 National Guard troops to the Southwest border, the continued debate over Arizona's immigration law, the State Department's 2010 trafficking report, increased U.S. immigration application fees and more.

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Spotlight
June 9, 2010
Indian Immigrants in the United States

The 1.6 million Indian immigrants in the United States are the country's third-largest immigrant group and one of its best educated and fastest growing during the 2000s. MPI's Aaron Terrazas and Cristina Batog use the latest federal data to explore the population's size, geographic distribution, and socioeconomic characteristics.

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Recent Activity

Articles
September 25, 2019

Supreme Court Asylum Ruling Latest Sign Judiciary Is Not the Brake on the Trump Administration that Immigration-Rights Activists Sought

Buoyed by initial successes challenging Trump administration immigration actions such as the travel ban in federal court, many critics expected the judiciary to act as a brake on major changes to the immigration system. Yet the Supreme Court has repeatedly shown a willingness to affirm the executive branch's immigration policies, most recently permitting what is arguably the most significant asylum policy change in four decades to proceed.

Commentaries
September 2019

As the United States Resettles Fewer Refugees, Some Countries and Religions Face Bigger Hits than Others

Even as refugee admissions have dropped sharply during the Trump administration, some countries and religions have been significantly more affected than others, as this commentary explores. In fiscal year 2019, 79 percent of refugees were Christian and 16 percent Muslim—as compared to 44 percent Christian and 46 percent Muslim in fiscal year 2016, which was the last full year of the Obama administration.

Reports
September 2019

Invertir en el vecindario: Cambios en los patrones de migración entre México y Estados Unidos y oportunidades para una cooperación sostenible

La migración entre México y Estados Unidos ha cambiado dramáticamente en los últimos años, pero las políticas y la retórica política en ambos países no se han actualizado a este contexto a la misma velocidad. Este reporte explora esta nueva realidad migratoria y cómo los dos gobiernos podrían trabajar juntos para abordar los desafíos de políticas públicas que tienen en común.

Reports
September 2019

Investing in the Neighborhood: Changing Mexico-U.S. Migration Patterns and Opportunities for Sustainable Cooperation

Migration between Mexico and the United States has changed dramatically in recent years, but policies and political rhetoric in both countries have not always kept up. This report, which draws from discussions of a high-level Mexico-U.S. study group convened by MPI and El Colegio de México, explores this new migration reality and how the two governments could work more closely together to address shared policy challenges.

Video, Audio, Webinars
August 28, 2019

Effectively Serving Immigrant and Dual Language Learner Families through Home Visiting Programs

Marking a policy brief's release, this webinar explores the promise of home visiting services that support new parents alongside their infants and toddlers, plus strategies for improving how these programs work with immigrant and linguistically diverse families.

Articles
August 29, 2019

Brazilian Immigrants in the United States

Approximately 450,000 Brazilian immigrants resided in the United States in 2017, an increase of nearly one-third since 2010. Representing 1 percent of the nation's 44.5 million immigrants, Brazilians tend to have higher educational attainment and household incomes compared to the overall foreign-born population. Get the latest data on Brazilians immigrants, including flows over time, geographic distribution, and more in this Spotlight.

Policy Briefs
August 2019

Leveraging the Potential of Home Visiting Programs to Serve Immigrant and Dual Language Learner Families

Home visiting programs for young families are growing in popularity across the United States, and have demonstrated their effectiveness in supporting maternal health and child well-being. At the same time, more infants and toddlers are growing up in immigrant families and households where a language other than English is spoken. Why then are these children under-represented in these programs? This brief explores common barriers, ways to address them, and why it is important to do so.

Video, Audio
August 20, 2019

Chronicling Migration in the 21st Century Through One Family’s Journey

Marking the launch of New York Times reporter Jason DeParle's book tracing the arc of migration and its impacts through the life of an extended family of Filipino migrants over a three-decade period, from Manila and through Dubai to the Houston area, this conversation with MPI's Andrew Selee and the World Bank's Dilip Ratha explores migration at both a global and very personal level.

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