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.
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.
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.
The U.S. humanitarian protection system, known for its long history of assisting those in need, has come under incredible pressure in recent years. The asylum adjudications system, which is under-resourced, is struggling to keep up with record asylum seeker arrivals at the U.S.-Mexico border. This report examines the state of the asylum system, including changes under the Biden administration and potential lessons for other countries.
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.
Those caught trying to enter the United States illegally in portions of five Southwest border sectors face criminal prosecution under Operation Streamline, which the Department of Homeland Security launched in 2005. MPI's Donald Kerwin and Kristen McCabe examine how Operation Streamline works, highlight trends in the prosecution of immigration offenses, and evaluate the program's outcomes.
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on Padilla v. Kentucky, Arizona's passage of a controversial immigration bill, Senators Charles Schumer and Lindsey Graham's immigration reform blueprint, the latest H-1B application numbers, and more
The 1.7 million Filipino immigrants in the United States made them the countrys second-largest immigrant group in 2008. MPIs Aaron Terrazas and Jeanne Batalova use the latest federal data to explore the population's size, geographic distribution, and socioeconomic characteristics.
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on the decreasing size of the unauthorized immigrant population, a ruling against immigration provisions in an Oklahoma law, the rise in detained immigrants with criminal convictions, and more.
Mexican immigrants have claimed the top spot among all immigrant groups in the United States since the 1980 census. In 2008, the country's 11.4 million Mexican immigrants accounted for 30.1 percent of all U.S. immigrants and 10 percent of all Mexicans. MPI's Aaron Terrazas examines their socioeconomic characteristics, where they live, and the size of the Mexican-born unauthorized population.
European migration, once the driving force of U.S. immigration, has steadily declined over the last 50 years. In 2014, 4.8 million European immigrants accounted for 11 percent of the total foreign-born population, down from 75 percent in 1960. Discover key statistics on this population in this Spotlight article, including countries of origin, language proficiency, employment, and more.
Approximately 86,000 Syrian immigrants resided in the United States in 2014, including 2,261 resettled refugees. This fact sheet provides information on the Syrian immigrant population in the United States, focusing on its size, socioeconomic characteristics, and geographic distribution.
The digital era offers opportunities for cities to improve access and outreach to residents, including immigrants and minority groups, through online tools and apps. This feature article explores ditigal-inclusion strategies in "smart" cities New York, London, and Barcelona, as well as the creative use of new technologies in response to the European refugee crisis.
The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled to maintain an injunction on President Obama's signature deferred action programs and the timing of the administration's Supreme Court appeal will prove critical amid the 2016 election campaign. This Policy Beat also explores a federal judge's decision not to block a Texas policy refusing to issue birth certificates to the U.S.-born children of unauthorized parents. Should the policy be upheld, it could open the door for further limitations on birthright citizenship.
As flows of young migrant and refugee children increase on both sides of the Atlantic, the demands placed on education systems by newcomer students have never been greater. This commentary addresses the challenges school systems face in building teacher capacity to address the diverse linguistic, academic, and socioemotional needs for newly arrived youth, many of whom have experienced significant disruption.
In June 2015, MPI's National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy convened a symposium in Brussels bringing together policymakers, teacher educators, and researchers from the United States and Europe to explore the imperative of improving educational outcomes for students from migrant and language-minority backgrounds. This report synthesizes themes and central questions raised during the presentations and discussions.
This annual discussion offered political and policy analysis on key immigration topics, including family detention, unaccompanied child migrants, executive action, and the presidential campaigns, along with featured keynotes by Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres.
In this webinar, the authors of three papers on the experiences of refugee children present their findings, with a focus on how such experiences affect their mental health and education.
Meeting the Education Needs of Rising Numbers of Newly Arrived Migrant Students in Europe and the United States