Articles - Immigrant Profiles & Demographics

This West African nation deals with a range of migration issues, from massive internal and regional migration to brain drain and a large, well-educated diaspora in the West that its government sees as key to future development. Blessing U. Mberu of the African Population and Health Research Center and Roland Pongou of Brown University take a comprehensive look at migration issues in Africa's most populous country.

The 1.6 million Indian immigrants in the United States are the country's third-largest immigrant group and one of its best educated and fastest growing during the 2000s. MPI's Aaron Terrazas and Cristina Batog use the latest federal data to explore the population's size, geographic distribution, and socioeconomic characteristics.

The 1.7 million Filipino immigrants in the United States made them the countrys second-largest immigrant group in 2008. MPIs Aaron Terrazas and Jeanne Batalova use the latest federal data to explore the population's size, geographic distribution, and socioeconomic characteristics.

Immigration to the United States continued steadily from the 1970s until the recent recession, which also diminished a sense of urgency to enact immigration reform legislation. MPI's Kristen McCabe and Doris Meissner provide a comprehensive look at major legislation and events affecting U.S. immigration, the size and attributes of the immigrant population, and policy changes under the Obama administration.

The 1.1 million Salvadoran immigrants residing in the United States in 2008 accounted for 2.9 percent of all U.S. immigrants, making them the second-largest immigrant group from Latin America. MPI's Aaron Terrazas examines their socioeconomic characteristics, where they live, and the size of the Salvadoran-born unauthorized population.

In 2008, there were just under 800,000 apprehensions, the lowest number since 1975. MPI's Kristen McCabe and Jeanne Batalova take a detailed look at the latest immigration enforcement statistics.

There were nearly 40 million temporary admissions to the United States in 2008, more than twice the number in 1990. MPI's Jeanne Batalova outlines the definition of nonimmigrants and takes a detailed look at admissions data and data limitations.

Over one million immigrants—one-third from Mexico, India, and the Philippines—became U.S. citizens in 2008. MPI's Jeanne Batalova takes a detailed look at the latest naturalization trends in the United States.

In 2008, the United States raised the ceiling on refugee admission by 10,000, admitted more than 60,000 refugees for resettlement, and granted asylum to nearly 23,000 people. MPI's Jeanne Batalova takes a detailed look at refugee and asylum statistics in the United States.