Program

U.S. Immigration Policy Program

The U.S. Immigration Policy Program provides analysis of immigration pathways, impacts of enforcement and other policies, and immigrant population characteristics.

Program

The U.S. Immigration Policy Program provides thought leadership on ways to improve the U.S. immigration system so that it works most effectively in the national interest. To that end, its work focuses on immigration pathways to the United States and immigration enforcement policies and their impacts. It examines the complex demographic, economic, social, political, foreign policy, and other forces that shape U.S. immigration.

Program staff produce data and analyses of immigration trends and the characteristics of U.S. immigrant populations, including unauthorized immigrants. And they conduct original research on the impacts of policy change and the experiences of immigrant populations in diverse parts of the country. This work is frequently informed by private convenings of policymakers and key stakeholders. For more, click here.

Commentary July 29, 2026

Following Years of High Border Arrivals, the U.S. Unauthorized Immigrant Population Hits New Peak

MPI estimates the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population reached a new peak of 15.8 million as of mid-2024, after holding steady at around 11 million…

People at a pedestrian crosswalk crossing the street

Policy Beat July 30, 2026

In Its Second Term, Trump Administration Quietly Expands Family Separation

Immigration enforcement during the second Trump term is driving a quieter, more diffuse wave of family separations inside the United States, often…

A silhouette of a young child looking sad and alone

Commentary May 2026

The Immigration Debate America Needs—and Is Not Having

Immigration is central to America’s economic future, yet debate fixates on border crises and policy failures instead of how a modern legal…

Male and female business professionals gathered at a conference table

Policy Beat May 28, 2026

Attacked as "De Facto Amnesty," U.S. Temporary Protected Status Is Abruptly Eroded

A woman wearing scrubs in a health-care setting reviews a chart

Commentary March 2026

U.S. Third-Country Deportation Agreements Are More About Fear than Numbers

Image of unauthorized immigrant in shackles entering plane for deportation flight

Policy Beat April 29, 2026

Though Rare, Birth Tourism to the United States Sparks Outsized Concern

Fact Sheet February 2026

A Profile of the Growing Black Immigrant Population in the United States

A Black female nurse in blue scrubs walking outside

14.8%

The immigrant share of the total U.S. population

Learn how this share has evolved (opens in a new tab)

50.2 million

The number of immigrants in the United States

Explore Data Profiles by State (opens in a new tab)

18.4%

The share of workers in the U.S. civilian labor force who are immigrants

Get the data at U.S. and state levels (opens in a new tab)

A line of people with their hands up taking the oath during a U.S. citizenship ceremony

Get Timely U.S. Immigration Analysis

The monthly U.S. Policy Beat covers, in brief, top developments at U.S., state, and local levels, and in the courts.

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Showing 21–30 of 821 results

Breaking the Cycle of Dysfunction at the U.S. Immigration Courts

With 3.8 million deportation cases pending as of mid-2025, the U.S. immigration courts faced a deepening crisis requiring urgent legislative and administrative reform.

Architectural detail on the outside of a courthouse

U.S. Immigrant Detention Grows to Record Heights under Trump Administration

U.S. immigrant detention hit historic highs under President Donald Trump’s second term, with record funding and private prison expansion. Most detainees had no criminal convictions.

People at the Eloy immigrant detention facility.

22nd Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference

Featuring a keynote by CNN's Fareed Zakaria, this conference explored pressing U.S. immigration issues, from mass deportations' and enforcement to legal services and the immigration court system.

Changing Origins, Rising Numbers: Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States

MPI estimates 13.7 million unauthorized immigrants lived in the United States as of mid-2023, up 3 million since 2019, with more diverse origins and legal circumstances.

Maine’s Immigrant Communities: Diverse Origins, Characteristics, and Challenges

Maine’s small but growing immigrant population, with many from Africa, Asia, and Canada, is vital to the state workforce yet still face barriers in housing, language, and access to benefits.

A New Era of Immigration Enforcement Unfolds in the U.S. Interior and at the Border under Trump 2.0

The transformation in U.S. immigration enforcement taking place at the U.S.-Mexico border and in communities across the United States during the second Trump term is tangibly captured in government data for fiscal year (FY) 2025. This short read sifts through the available data to look at encounters, arrests, detentions, and deportations during the fiscal year.