E.g., 04/24/2024
E.g., 04/24/2024
Employment-Based Immigration

Employment-Based Immigration

_EmploymentbasedImm

Immigration can be a powerful tool for supporting a country’s economic growth and prosperity, but its success in accomplishing that objective depends on well-designed and carefully implemented immigration policies that strategically facilitate immigration’s economic contribution. Major immigrant-receiving countries increasingly are examining how to select immigrants across a range of skill levels, retain those with the greatest potential to succeed, engage employers constructively in the immigration process, and facilitate immigrant integration, as the research here explores.

Recent Activity

A returned migrant with his family in Bangladesh
Articles
April 19, 2024
Bangladesh’s Economic Vitality Owes in Part to Migration and Remittances
By Khandaker Mursheda Farhana and Kazi Abdul Mannan
Flags of South American countries.
Articles
April 11, 2024
South American Immigrants in the United States
By Julian Montalvo and Jeanne Batalova
People walk through the streets of Hong Kong
Articles
April 3, 2024
Brain Drain and Brain Gain in Hong Kong’s Population Shuffle
By Yiran Yu
Image of female worker at the Boqueria market in Barcelona making a crepe
Commentaries
March 2024
As Europe and the United States Face Similar Migration Challenges, Spain Can Act as a Bridge
By  Anna Terrón Cusí and Andrew Selee
A naturalization ceremony at the White House.
Articles
March 13, 2024
Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States
By Jeanne Batalova
Cover image for Diverging Paths
Reports
March 2024
Diverging Paths: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in the Middle East and North Africa
By  Samuel Davidoff-Gore
Cover image for A New Way Forward for Employment-Based Immigration
Policy Briefs
February 2024
A New Way Forward for Employment-Based Immigration: The Bridge Visa
By  Julia Gelatt and Muzaffar Chishti
A family of Afghan evacuees leaving Fort McCoy, Wisconsin.
Articles
February 15, 2024
Afghan Immigrants in the United States
By Julian Montalvo and Jeanne Batalova

Pages

Cover image for Diverging Paths
Reports
March 2024
Diverging Paths: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in the Middle East and North Africa
By  Samuel Davidoff-Gore
Cover image for A New Way Forward for Employment-Based Immigration
Policy Briefs
February 2024
A New Way Forward for Employment-Based Immigration: The Bridge Visa
By  Julia Gelatt and Muzaffar Chishti
Cover image for Consolidating Gains
Policy Briefs
December 2023
Consolidating Gains: Lessons and Priorities for Promoting Fair and Ethical Recruitment
By  Kate Hooper
Cover image for the brief What Role Can Immigration Play...
Policy Briefs
April 2023
What Role Can Immigration Play in Addressing Current and Future Labor Shortages?
By  Kate Hooper
Cover image for Migration, Integration, and Diaspora Engagement in the Caribbean
Reports
March 2023
Migration, Integration, and Diaspora Engagement in the Caribbean: A Policy Review
By  Valerie Lacarte, Jordi Amaral, Diego Chaves-González, Ana María Sáiz and Jeremy Harris
Cover image for Unblocking the U.S. Immigration System
Policy Briefs
February 2023
Unblocking the U.S. Immigration System: Executive Actions to Facilitate the Migration of Needed Workers
By  Julia Gelatt
Cover image for Reassessing Recruitment Costs
Policy Briefs
November 2022
Reassessing Recruitment Costs in a Changing World of Labor Migration
By  Kate Hooper
Cover image for The Future of Remote Work
Reports
June 2022
The Future of Remote Work: Digital Nomads and the Implications for Immigration Systems
By  Kate Hooper and Meghan Benton

Pages

A returned migrant with his family in Bangladesh
Profile
April 19, 2024
Bangladesh’s Economic Vitality Owes in Part to Migration and Remittances

For a young country, Bangladesh has a complex migration history, with periods of forced migration during the partition of India and Pakistan as well as the 1971 war of independence. In recent years, labor emigration has proved a major economic boon to the country. This country profile reviews trends and the impact of emigration, with a particular focus on the effects of remittance sending and receipt.

Flags of South American countries.
Spotlight
April 11, 2024
South American Immigrants in the United States

The South American immigrant population in the United States has grown at a faster rate than that of the overall foreign-born population, amid crises in Venezuela, Colombia, and elsewhere. Yet South Americans still account for only about one in ten U.S. immigrants. While they mirror the overall U.S. immigrant population in several demographic characteristics, there are some notable differences, as this article details.

People walk through the streets of Hong Kong
Feature
April 3, 2024
Brain Drain and Brain Gain in Hong Kong’s Population Shuffle

Hong Kong finds itself in the middle of opposing trends. Amid political unrest, Beijing's increasing security pressure, and pandemic disruptions, many Hong Kongers have left and been replaced by a new group of immigrants, largely from mainland China. The dynamic has raised questions whether Hong Kong will remain a global cosmopolitan hub or instead turn inward to Asia, as this article discusses.

A naturalization ceremony at the White House.
Spotlight
March 13, 2024
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.

A family of Afghan evacuees leaving Fort McCoy, Wisconsin.
Spotlight
February 15, 2024
Afghan Immigrants in the United States

The Afghan immigrant population in the United States has grown dramatically since 2010, and particularly since the 2021 withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan. Most Afghans who obtained a green card in recent years have done so through the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program, reserved for interpreters and other Afghans who worked with the U.S. government. This article offers data on the approximately 195,000 Afghan immigrants in the United States.

Pages

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Image of female worker at the Boqueria market in Barcelona making a crepe
Commentaries
March 2024
As Europe and the United States Face Similar Migration Challenges, Spain Can Act as a Bridge
By  Anna Terrón Cusí and Andrew Selee
Graphic image of man's hand touching screen with word skills
Commentaries
July 2023
Canada's New Tech Talent Strategy Takes Aim at High-Skilled Immigrants in the United States
By  Kate Hooper, Jeanne Batalova and Julia Gelatt
Photo of a mural at Las Americas, a legal assistance nonprofit in El Paso, Texas
Commentaries
May 2023
Regional Processing Centers: Can This Key Component of the Post-Title 42 U.S. Strategy Work?
By  Andrew Selee
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other leaders at the 2022 Summit of the Americas
Commentaries
June 2022
La Declaración de Los Ángeles podría representar un gran paso para la cooperación migratoria real en las Américas
By  Andrew Selee
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other leaders at the 2022 Summit of the Americas
Commentaries
June 2022
The Los Angeles Declaration Could Represent a Big Step for Real Migration Cooperation across the Americas
By  Andrew Selee
Image of Central American migrant caravan passing through Chiapas, Mexico
Commentaries
April 2022
Beyond the Border: Opportunities for Managing Regional Migration between Central and North America
By  Ariel G. Ruiz Soto and Andrew Selee
Scene of Ukrainian street with barricades.
Commentaries
February 2022
Is Europe Prepared for a Possible Large-Scale Ukrainian Displacement Crisis?
By  Hanne Beirens
Woman in France working in a vineyard
Commentaries
October 2021
Labor Shortages during the Pandemic and Beyond: What Role Can Immigration Policy Play?
By  Kate Hooper
Photo of computer lab at the Jugaani village school in Georgia
Commentaries
June 2021
Achieving the “Partnership” in the European Union’s Talent Partnerships
By  Kate Hooper
unsplash headway tech workers
Commentaries
October 2020
Broad and Blunt, the Trump Administration’s H-1B Changes Miss the Opportunity for Real Reform
By  Sarah Pierce

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Explainer_LegalImmigrationSystem Legal Immigration Pie_small
Explainers
April 2019

Explainer: How the U.S. Legal Immigration System Works

Through which visa categories can immigrants move temporarily or permanently to the United States? What are the main channels by which people come, and who can sponsor them for a green card? Are there limits on visa categories? And who is waiting in the green-card backlog? This explainer answers basic questions about temporary and permanent immigration via family, employment, humanitarian, and other channels.

Expert Q&A, Audio
January 24, 2024

Are the Pacific’s Climate Migration Experiments a Preview for the World?

What can the rest of the world learn from climate migration legal experiments in the Pacific? This episode of the Changing Climate, Changing Migration podcast features insights from renowned legal scholar Jane McAdam, who directs the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at UNSW.

Image of USCIS Director Ur Jaddou
Video, Audio
April 11, 2023

Meeting Global Skills and Talent Needs in Changing Labor Markets

Marking the launch of MPI’s Global Skills and Talent Initiative, this webcast features senior policymakers and other experts discussing the extent to which labor market needs should shape future immigration policy decisions, and how countries are adjusting—and could adjust—their immigration systems to meet human capital and competitiveness needs.

Expert Q&A, Audio
March 30, 2023

New Avenues to Help Refugees Get to Safety and Restart Their Lives

How could humanitarian migrants with skills and experience use existing work or study visa pathways to fill labor market needs in destination countries? MPI’s Susan Fratzke speaks with Betsy Fisher, U.S. Director of the nonprofit Talent Beyond Boundaries, about complementary pathways as an innovative addition to refugee resettlement and asylum.

Video
June 21, 2022

Labor Migration and Development in Central America

On this webinar, speakers discuss the main challenges faced by countries of origin and destination in ensuring mutual benefits through labor migration and strategies moving forward related to migration and development in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. 

Image of worker in corn field, checking corn
Video, Audio
June 14, 2022

Alternativas a la migración irregular: Ampliación de los programas de trabajo temporal en Canadá, México y Costa Rica

Este seminario web, que presenta el lanzamiento de un informe, examina el potencial de Canadá, México y Costa Rica para expandir los programas de trabajadores temporales para los centroamericanos, ofreciendo un medio importante para convertir algunos flujos irregulares en flujos legales.

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Recent Activity

Video, Webinars
February 4, 2021

Prospects for a U.S. Legalization Program and the Unauthorized Immigrant Groups that Could Factor in the Debate

Following President Biden's call on Congress to enact a sweeping immigration proposal that offers most unauthorized immigrants a pathway to citizenship, this discussion examines the prospects for any legislative efforts at immigration reform, what bipartisan support might develop, and the various legalization policy options. The event also showcases MPI estimates of subgroups within the unauthorized population, including DREAMers and essential workers. 

Reports
December 2020

Construcción de un nuevo sistema migratorio regional: Redefiniendo la cooperación entre Estados Unidos con México y Centroamérica

Un desafío y una oportunidad clave que enfrentará la administración de Joe Biden será cómo abordar la cooperación regional en relación a la migración. Este informe explora la evolución de la movilidad entre los Estados Unidos, México y Centroamérica y presenta una estrategia para ampliar las oportunidades en cuanto a la migración legal, abordar necesidades humanitarias, fortalecer la aplicación de la ley y mitigar algunas de las fuerzas que provocan la emigración.

Video, Webinars
September 21, 2020

17th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference

This year’s Immigration Law and Policy Conference examines the immigration policy agenda under the Trump administration, including changes in the asylum system; the vast societal upheaval brought on by COVID-19 and the rising racial justice movement; what the future of U.S. immigration may look like; and many other topics related to U.S. immigration policy.

Reports
November 2020

Building a New Regional Migration System: Redefining U.S. Cooperation with Mexico and Central America

Addressing regional cooperation around migration will be among the immigration challenges and opportunities facing the incoming Biden administration. This report examines how movement between the United States, Mexico, and Central America has evolved in recent decades, and lays out a four-part strategy to expand opportunities for legal migration, address humanitarian protection needs, improve enforcement, and mitigate some of the forces driving people to emigrate.

Articles
November 20, 2020

The “Trump Effect” on Legal Immigration Levels: More Perception than Reality?

Despite a widespread perception that the Trump administration has drastically slashed legal immigration to the United States, a review of the data shows that temporary and permanent admissions during the period mostly followed previous trends—at least until the COVID-19 pandemic hit. This article examines trends in temporary, permanent, and humanitarian admissions during the administration, and the related policies that could take a more significant bite ahead if left unchanged.

Reports
November 2020

Managing the Pandemic and Its Aftermath: Economies, Jobs, and International Migration in the Age of COVID-19

Around the world, governments are grappling with how to combat the COVID-19 pandemic while also managing the economic fallout of policies put in place to stop the virus’ spread. Global migration has dropped sharply amid border closures and travel restrictions. This reflection takes stock of policy responses to the pandemic thus far, and of the challenges (and some opportunities) on the horizon for migration systems, labor markets, and integration of newcomers.

Video, Expert Q&A, Audio
November 9, 2020

What Is Immigration Policy Expected to Look Like in a Biden Administration?

What actions might the incoming Biden administration take on immigration, whether to unwind some of the most restrictive Trump policies or advance an affirmative agenda of its own? And what challenges and opportunities will the Biden administration face? MPI experts analyze the campaign pledges and prospects ahead, for everything from reversing the Remain in Mexico program and cuts to legal immigration, ending border wall construction, and reviving DACA and refugee resettlement, as well as new policies such as legalization.

Policy Briefs
November 2020

At the Starting Gate: The Incoming Biden Administration’s Immigration Plans

Joe Biden pledged during his campaign to reverse some of the most restrictive immigration actions undertaken during Donald Trump’s four years in office. While some actions can be undone with the stroke of a pen, others will take more time. This policy brief outlines the incoming administration’s top immigration priorities, examines challenges and opportunities ahead, and previews MPI policy ideas that could improve the immigration system and advance the national interest.

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