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
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…
Trump Restrictions on Legal Immigration Could Sharply Reduce U.S. Population Growth
President Donald Trump's second-term curbs on legal immigration, spanning visas, refugees, and family reunification, could meaningfully slow U.S…
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)
- General Inquiries
- Media Inquiries
-
Michelle Mittelstadt
202 266 1910 [email protected]
Showing 51–60 of 819 results
Immigrants and the Use of Public Benefits in the United States
Most noncitizens in the United States face significant restrictions on access to federally funded public benefits—particularly unauthorized immigrants.
Immigrants and the U.S. Economy
The question of whether immigration represents a net cost or a net benefit to the U.S. economy has been a major source of contention. Research finds that, on balance, it is a net positive.
Immigrants and Crime in the United States
A significant and growing body of research at U.S., state, and local levels demonstrates that immigrants commit crimes at lower rates than the U.S.-born population.
Who Are Immigrants in the United States?
With immigration a central focus in U.S. public and policy conversations, this explainer answers key questions about the characteristics of the foreign-born population.
The Nascent Architecture for Managing U.S. Border Arrivals Shows Promise
While unauthorized crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border have plummeted in 2024, improving on these results requires immigration strategies that go far beyond the border. A new architecture for managing migration implemented over the past three years is fragile but holds promise and represents a necessary direction, this commentary argues.
With New Strategies At and Beyond the U.S. Border, Migrant Encounters Plunge
Encounters of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border for fiscal 2024 fell to 2.1 million, a 14 percent drop from the prior year as the result of the Biden administration deepening its carrot-and-stick approach alongside increased immigration enforcement throughout the Western Hemisphere, especially from Mexico. September represented the lowest monthly encounters of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border without authorization seen during this administration.
21st Annual Immigration Law & Policy Conference
Featuring keynotes by IOM Director General Amy Pope, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, and DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, this conference examined competing U.S. immigration narratives, the global smuggling economy, immigration executive orders and litigation, and more.
Despite Sharply Different Immigration Rhetoric, Democrats and Republicans Now Have a Similar Approach to the Border
Three years of record border arrivals pushed Democrats toward Republican-style enforcement rhetoric, but deep divisions between the political parties remain over deportations and legal immigration.
Noncitizen Voting in U.S. Elections
Get answers to common questions about voting by unauthorized immigrants and other noncitizens, which audits by elections officials and independent research have demonstrated is extremely rare.
After Crisis of Unprecedented Migrant Arrivals, U.S. Cities Settle into New Normal
Two years after Texas began busing migrants to U.S. interior cities, local governments had found a fragile footing, but billions in unmet costs and uncertain federal support left them vulnerable.
