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 521–530 of 821 results
A House Divided: Divergent Views in Congress Over Immigration Reform
An online web chat with MPI's Doris Meissner and Muzaffar Chishti examining the U.S. Senate & House bills for Immigration Reform in 2013.
Doris Meissner Testimony Video: Border Security
Testimony of Doris Meissner, Senior Fellow and Director, U.S. Immigration Policy Program, before the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate.
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals at the One-Year Mark: A Profile of Currently Eligible Youth and Applicants
One year in, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program reached 49 percent of eligible youth, with uptake sharply divided by state, national origin, and access to education.
Pensando Regionalmente para Competir Globalmente: Aprovechar la Migración y el Capital Humano en Estados Unidos, México y Centroamérica
La reforma migratoria de EE.UU. con visas flexibles y legalización, apoyada por inversión regional en capital humano, es clave para la competitividad de toda la región.
Side-by-Side Comparison of 2013 Senate Immigration Bill with Individual 2013 House Bills
The 2013 Senate immigration bill and five targeted House bills diverged sharply on legalization, enforcement, and legal immigration structure.
Now that the Senate Has Passed Landmark Immigration Legislation, All Eyes Are on the House
Republican divisions in the U.S. House of Representatives threatened to stall the most sweeping overhaul since 1965.
Migración Mexicana a los EE.UU.: Factores Económicos Subyacentes y Posibles Escenarios de Flujos Futuros
Los flujos netos de mexicanos a EE.UU. crecerán post-crisis pero no alcanzarán los niveles de los 90; la demanda sectorial estadounidense es el principal factor explicativo.
As Senate Debates Immigration Reform, CBO and New Studies Examine Effects of Immigration on Nation's Fiscal Health
The Congressional Budget Office projected immigration reform would reduce the federal deficit by $175 billion over ten years.
Remaking the U.S. Green Card System: Legal Immigration under the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013
The Senate's 2013 comprehensive immigration reform bill would grow skills-based green cards nearly fourfold while preserving family admissions.
As Congress Tackles Immigration Legislation, State Lawmakers Retreat from Strict Measures
Few predicted that U.S. states racing to restrict immigration in 2011 would, by 2013, be doubling driver's license access for unauthorized immigrants and enacting tuition parity.
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