U.S. Immigration Policy 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.
Featured
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…
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…
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…
More Featured Work
Key Statistics
Learn more about immigrants and immigration to the United States
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)Showing 351–360 of 821 results
The Diversity Visa Program Holds Lessons for Future Legal Immigration Reform
Half of Diversity Visa recipients coming to the United States in recent years have a college degree, belying claims the program only brings in the low-skilled.
A Path to Citizenship for 1.8 Million Dreamers? Despite Talk, No Proposal Would Do So
Despite talk of legalizing 1.8 million Dreamers, none of the Senate bills considered in 2018 would have put that number on a path to citizenship, according to MPI estimates.
Estimating the DREAMer Populations That Could Benefit under Senate Legalization Proposals, February 2018
MPI estimates provide a sense of who could potentially gain legal status under the various DREAM Act-type bills considered in the Senate in February 2018.
Shifting Gears, Trump Administration Launches High-Profile Worksite Enforcement Operations
Chile's immigrant population quadrupled over two decades, outpacing every other country in Latin America and stoking backlash and a rightward political shift.
Trump’s First Year on Immigration Policy: Rhetoric vs. Reality
During its first year, the Trump administration sought to cancel DACA, Temporary Protected Status, and refugee protections, but the border wall stalled in Congress and courts.
The Trump Immigration Plan: A Lopsided Proposal
The Trump administration would trade a path to legal status for up to 1.8 million Dreamers in exchange for sweeping immigration enforcement and deep cuts to family immigration.
In the Age of Trump: Populist Backlash and Progressive Resistance Create Divergent State Immigrant Integration Contexts
U.S. states are diverging sharply on enforcement, health access, and education in response to federal immigration changes, widening integration gaps for immigrants and refugees.
Temporary Protected Status at Risk: Implications for Central America and U.S. Policy
As the Trump administration weighs the future of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Salvadorans, this teleconference focuses on the legal framework for TPS (particularly for Hondurans and Salvadorans) and profile of current TPS holders; the capacity of El Salvador and Honduras to receive and meaningfully reintegrate returnees; and the implications of TPS termination for broader U.S. policy goals in Central America.
Will Dreamers Crowd U.S.-Born Millennials Out of Jobs?
Dreamers make up less than 1 percent of millennial workers and are concentrated in different states and industries than U.S.-born peers, weakening job displacement claims.
Tens of Thousands in United States Face Uncertain Future, as Temporary Protected Status Deadlines Loom
The proposed terminations of temporary statuses during the first Trump term put hundreds of thousands at risk of deportation, with few legal pathways to stay.
- General Inquiries
- Media Inquiries
-
Michelle Mittelstadt
202 266 1910 [email protected]