Migration Information Source
The South American immigrant population in the United States has grown at a faster rate than that of the overall foreign-born population, amid crises in Venezuela, Colombia, and elsewhere. Yet South Americans still account for only about one in ten U.S. immigrants. While they mirror the overall U.S. immigrant population in several demographic characteristics, there are some notable differences, as this article details.
Hong Kong finds itself in the middle of opposing trends. Amid political unrest, Beijing's increasing security pressure, and pandemic disruptions, many Hong Kongers have left and been replaced by a new group of immigrants, largely from mainland China. The dynamic has raised questions whether Hong Kong will remain a global cosmopolitan hub or instead turn inward to Asia, as this article discusses.
The U.S. immigration enforcement system increasingly depends on other countries to help halt irregular movements through the Americas and accept the return of unauthorized migrants. Foreign governments play a crucial and yet underappreciated role in migration management, and can either aid or frustrate U.S. border-control aims, as this article explores.
Environmental Protection Agency
One-fifth of the planet lacks adequate housing. That scarcity, expected to affect 3 billion people by 2030, is a problem for native-born and immigrant communities alike. The global housing shortage can aggravate tensions over immigration and lead to integration challenges for new arrivals, as this article details.
Hannah Foslien/White House
Immigration touches on many facets of life in the United States. Get the facts with this useful resource, which compiles in one place answers to some of the most often-asked questions about immigration and immigrants in the United States now and historically. This article contains essential data on the immigrant population, immigration levels, trends in immigration enforcement, and much more.
© UNHCR/Hossein Eidizadeh
Floods, heatwaves, and other extreme weather events have displaced hundreds of thousands of people in Iran, with repercussions for residents including the 3.4 million refugees and other forced migrants, who are restricted to climate-affected areas. Environmental challenges may also be pushing some people to move internationally. This article offers a rare look at the climate and migration dynamics in Iran.
Whether as migrant-sending or migrant-receiving locations—or both—many countries have rich, complex international and internal migration histories. MPI's online journal, the Migration Information Source, offers resources on more than 100 nations. Written by leading scholars, these articles delve into countries' migration histories, demographics, policymaking, and more.
Immigration touches on many facets of life in the United States. Get the facts with this useful resource, which compiles in one place answers to some of the most often-asked questions about immigration and immigrants in the United States now and historically. This article contains essential data on the immigrant population, immigration levels, trends in immigration enforcement, and much more.
Severe weather, rising seas, and other consequences of global climate change are affecting the way people live, work, and move around the planet. While there is no clear, direct line between the impacts of climate change and changing human movement, there are indications that the warming planet is indirectly creating or altering patterns of migration. Our podcast Changing Climate, Changing Migration dives deep into the intersection of climate change and migration to separate fact from fiction.
Recent Articles
Climate change has had a devastating impact on many poor Central American farmers, which can contribute to food insecurity and may be prompting migration from the region's Dry Corridor. But the process is not straightforward. As this article explains, most poor farmers rely on a combination of buying, cultivating, and foraging for their food, which makes it difficult to predict how people will react to individual climate events.
Have a question about U.S. immigration trends and the country's immigrant population? This article collects in one place the most sought-after information about the world's largest immigrant population and how it has changed over time. Drawing from a wide array of authoritative data sources, this article provides an up-to-date snapshot of the immigrant population, visa and enforcement statistics, and information on emerging trends, including slowing immigration and changing origins.
In recent decades Russia has been increasingly reliant on Central Asian migrant workers. Those workers, in turn, have sent back remittances that have been crucial for their countries of origin. Since 2015, many of these ex-Soviet countries have come together in the Eurasian Economic Union to solidify their bonds and ease migrants' passage to Russia. This article explores the bloc and how it reflects Russia's role in the region.
The Biden administration has set the pace for what could be the most active first 100 days on immigration policy by any White House in recent memory—even that of predecessor Donald Trump. The efforts, which represent a dramatic break from the Trump administration's view of immigration as threat, are likely to meet stiff opposition on Capitol Hill and elsewhere. This article evaluates Biden's early actions and what they suggest about the White House's ambitions on immigration.
While intraregional migration is a pillar of the African Union's focus on enhancing regional integration and economic development, visa-free travel or visas upon arrival are a reality for only about half of the countries on the continent. Progress towards free movement for Africans has occurred mostly at a subregional level, as this article explores.
Pages
Over the past decade, state and local policymakers have increasingly stepped into the void left by Washington over legislative reform of the immigration system and have enacted their own policies, particularly in regard to illegal immigration. This article explores this trend of increased activism and examines whether restrictive state immigration laws have had an effect on the size of immigrant populations at the state level.
Hong Kong is home to more than 340,000 foreign domestic workers, who can be found in one of every seven households. Despite efforts by the governments of Hong Kong and top sending countries, these workers remain uniquely vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. This article examines the conditions foreign domestic workers face, the policies governing their employment, and the challenges in protecting their rights.
Over the past several decades, in response to the uptick in spontaneous migration flows, there has been a surge in construction of border walls and fences. This trend begs several questions: Why now? Did border walls work in the past? Do they work today? This article examines the history of border barriers and assesses how effective they are at deterring unauthorized migration.
Two years on, the Australia-Cambodia refugee relocation agreement—the first of its kind involving a traditional resettlement country relocating refugees to a country with no resettlement track record—has proven to be underwhelming in its outcomes. Only five refugees have been voluntarily relocated under the deal, of whom just one remains in Cambodia. This article explores where the deal went wrong and what lies ahead for Australia’s detained asylum seekers.
The Head Start program—a model for early childhood education programs nationwide—has served more than 33 million children since its inception half a century ago, many from immigrant families. This article examines the role of Head Start in the education of Dual Language Learners, who now comprise one-third of enrollees, and discusses how recent policy changes may affect this population.
Pages
While the number of people detained reached a five-year high of over 383,000, apprehensions hit a 34-year low of 613,000 in 2009. MPI's Jeanne Batalova and Kristen McCabe examine the latest immigration enforcement data in this updated Spotlight.
Few visas in the U.S. alphabet soup of visa types have become as well-known — or controversial — as the H-1B has in its 20-year history. MPI's Jeanne Batalova examines the program's background and the numbers and characteristics of those granted H-1B visas in 2009.
Compared to the foreign born overall, the 1.1 million Vietnamese immigrants in the United States were less likely to hold a bachelor's degree but had much higher naturalization and homeownership rates. MPI's Aaron Terrazas and Cristina Batog look at the population's size, geographic distribution, and socioeconomic characteristics.
The nation's 1.0 million Korean immigrants have settled in greater numbers in new destination states like Georgia, Washington, and Virginia. They are also more likely than immigrants overall to have a college degree and be naturalized citizens. MPI's Aaron Terrazas and Cristina Batog look at the population's size, geographic distribution and socioeconomic characteristics.
Over three-quarters of Taiwanese immigrants own their home, and almost as many hold a bachelor's degree or higher. MPI's Serena Yi-Ying Lin examines the population's size, geographic distribution, and socioeconomic characteristics.
Pages
The search yielded 0 results
Pages
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on the Obama administration's review of previous immigration policies, access to health care for immigrant children under SCHIP, remittances to Mexico, and more.
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on immigration policy decisions facing the Obama administration, permanent residence for trafficking victims, US-VISIT's extension to U.S. permanent residents, and more.
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano's nomination to head homeland security, changes to the H-2A program, suspension of a refugee family-reunification program, and more.
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on the 2008 presidential election, two Supreme Court cases on immigration, Arizona Proposition 202, and more.
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on the decrease in unauthorized immigration, the latest ruling on Arizona's employer-sanctions law, Iraqi refugees, Alabama and Arkansas on the in-state tuition debate, and more.
Pages
