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 631–640 of 821 results
DREAM vs. Reality: An Analysis of Potential DREAM Act Beneficiaries
Roughly 2.1 million people could qualify under the 2010 DREAM Act, but only about 825,000 would be likely to obtain permanent legal status.
Marc Rosenblum Testimony Video: Immigration and U.S. Immigration Policy
Testimony of Marc Rosenblum, MPI Senior Policy Analyst, before the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.
7th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference
The conference focused on Current Topics in Immigration Law and Policy; Reforming the U.S. Immigration Court System; Humanitarian Relief, Access to Protection, and U.S. Asylum Policies; and Enforcement of Immigration Law. Eric P. Schwartz, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, U.S. Department of State spoke on U.S. policy on international migration.
Political Considerations Surround Decision to Deploy National Guard to Southwest Border
The Obama administration planned to send 1,200 National Guard troops to the Southwest border, fewer than senators demanded, with no authority to make arrests.
Immigrants: Contributors to the Economy or Competitors for American Jobs?
Briefing and discussion of the release of the latest paper by MPI's Labor Markets Initiative. Speakers are report author Giovanni Peri, UC Davis Professor of Economics; Ross Eisenbrey, Vice President, Economic Policy Institute; and Demetrios G. Papademetriou, MPI President.
The Impact of Immigrants in Recession and Economic Expansion
Immigration delivers long-run productivity but can reduce native employment during economic slowdowns. Linking visa numbers to employer demand can yield better outcomes.
Reform of the Immigration Removal Adjudication System
A discussion on possible reforms to the immigration adjudication system and the recent report on the topic by the American Bar Association's Commission on Immigration. The event was moderated by MPI Vice President for Programs Donald Kerwin, and the panelists were: Robert A. Katzmann, U.S. Circuit Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit; Karen T. Grisez, Chair, ABA Commission on Immigration; and Lawrence A. Schneider, Senior Partner, Arnold & Porter LLP, who led the ABA report research team.
New Arizona Law Engulfs Immigration Debate
Arizona's SB 1070 split opinion sharply: 64 percent of Americans overall supported it, while 70 percent of Hispanic respondents opposed it.
Supreme Court Rules that Attorneys Must Inform Criminal Defendants of the Immigration Consequences of Pleading Guilty
In Padilla v. Kentucky, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that defense attorneys must warn noncitizen clients of deportation risks from guilty pleas.
Immigrant Legalization: Assessing Labor Market Effects
Public Policy Institute of California researchers Magnus Lofstrom and Laura Hill discuss their research examining the potential labor market outcomes and other possible economic effects of a legalization program. The discussion was moderated by Doris Meissner, MPI Senior Fellow and Director of the U.S. Immigration Policy Program, with comments from MPI Senior Policy Analyst Randy Capps and Sherrie A. Kossoudji, Associate Professor, School of Social Work, and Adjunct Professor, Department of Economics, University of Michigan.
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Michelle Mittelstadt
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