E.g., 06/28/2023
E.g., 06/28/2023
U.S. Immigration Policy Program

U.S. Immigration Policy Program

Border Security
Immigrant Profiles & Demographics
Employment & the Economy
Illegal Immigration & Interior Enforcement
Immigrant Integration
Immigration Policy & Law
Refugee & Asylum Policy
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Policy Briefs
May 2023

Understanding Poverty Declines among Immigrants and Their Children in the United States

A young boy holds hands with his dad as they walk in a park
iStock.com/SolStock

The United States has seen notable declines in overall and child poverty since 2009, continuing even into the period of pandemic-driven economic upheaval. This issue brief takes a closer look at how these trends have played out for immigrants and their children, by citizenship status and race/ethnicity. It also explores factors that have contributed to these poverty declines.

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Commentaries
May 2023

Regional Processing Centers: Can This Key Component of the Post-Title 42 U.S. Strategy Work?

Photo of a mural at Las Americas, a legal assistance nonprofit in El Paso, Texas
Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh

Amid a potentially dramatic rethink in the U.S. approach to management of migration from the Western Hemisphere, the creation of Regional Processing Centers across Latin America will be central to the post-Title 42 strategy, as this commentary explains.

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Commentaries
April 2023

A Post-Title 42 Vision for Migration Management Comes into Focus

Photo of CBP One App poster at shelter in Reynosa, Mexico
Ariel G. Ruiz Soto

Facing a dramatically different reality arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border with the end of a pandemic-era policy that resulted in more than 3 million expulsions, the Biden administration unveiled a policy vision that marries expanded legal pathways with stiff consequences for those seeking to enter without authorization. The strategy can succeed, but speedier while still fair border asylum decisionmaking must be an essential component, this commentary argues.

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Commentaries
March 2023

Revamping Asylum at the U.S.-Mexico Border: A Workable Rescue?

CBP agents process asylum seeker at El Paso, Texas port of entry
Glenn Fawcett/CBP

The border asylum proposed rule the Biden administration unveiled in February represents a bid to save the U.S. asylum system, not shut it down, as some contend. Whether it can succeed, however, depends on how it is implemented and on other steps that are beyond the bounds of the proposed rule, as this commentary explains.

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Policy Briefs
March 2023

SNAP Access and Participation in U.S.-Born and Immigrant Households: A Data Profile

Fresh vegetables and fruits in a supermarket
iStock.com/JackF

The U.S. government created the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or food stamps, to combat food insecurity. Under federal law, many lawfully present noncitizens in poor households are ineligible. This issue brief examines the size and characteristics of the population of immigrants with incomes low enough to qualify for SNAP and their eligibility for and participation in the program, at U.S. and state levels.  

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Policy Briefs
February 2023

Unblocking the U.S. Immigration System: Executive Actions to Facilitate the Migration of Needed Workers

A group of office workers with laptops
iStock.com/FS-Stock

Inefficiencies in the U.S. immigration system and case backlogs are preventing individuals eligible for immigration to the United States from filling some of the millions of job vacancies. This policy brief outlines executive actions that could facilitate the migration of needed workers, retain immigrants already in the U.S. workforce, and ease challenges experienced by U.S. employers and their foreign-born workers.

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A person walks with luggage in John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City.
Articles

After a Slump, Legal Immigration to the United States Is Returning to Pre-Pandemic Levels

Legal immigration to the United States fell to its lowest level in years during the COVID-19 pandemic, but preliminary data suggest it is returning to previous levels, belying predictions that the public-health crisis had allowed the Trump administration to make lasting, deep cuts. Yet the patterns have changed and persistent case processing backlogs could spell long-term problems, as this article explores.

A mariachi band performing in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Articles

Mexican Immigrants in the United States

Mexicans are by far the largest immigrant group in the United States, accounting for nearly one-fourth of all immigrants. However their numbers have been declining and in 2021 there were 1 million fewer than a decade ago. At the same time, despite years in which more new migrants came from China and India, Mexicans once again count as the largest group of new arrivals. This article outlines the changing shape and composition of this immigrant population.

Rethinking US Immigration CMS

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The Rethinking U.S. Immigration Policy Initiative is generating a big-picture, evidence-driven vision of the role immigration can and should play in America’s future. In a range of reports and other analyses, the Rethinking Initiative is examining the state of the U.S. asylum system, border enforcement, the legal immigration system, immigration detention, and the immigration courts, and is advancing pragmatic policy solutions to fix the long dysfunctional immigration system.

Recent Activity

EVENT PHOTO 2017.5.4 Changing Realities at the Borderv3
Multimedia
May 4, 2017
Recognizing Changing Enforcement and Crossing Trends at the U.S.-Mexico Border
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Reports
May 2017
A Revolving Door No More? A Statistical Profile of Mexican Adults Repatriated from the United States
By  Ryan Schultheis and Ariel G. Ruiz Soto
Advances in U.S.-Mexico Border Enforcement: A Review of the Consequence Delivery System
Reports
May 2017
Advances in U.S.-Mexico Border Enforcement: A Review of the Consequence Delivery System
By  Randy Capps, Faye Hipsman and Doris Meissner
CanadaBorder ckowalik Flickr
Articles
April 26, 2017
Uptick in Northern Border Crossings Places Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement under Pressure
By Sela Cowger
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Fact Sheets
April 2017
The First 100 Days: Summary of Major Immigration Actions Taken by the Trump Administration
By  Sela Cowger, Jessica Bolter and Sarah Pierce
EVENT PHOTO 2017.4.24 100 Days into Trumps Term and Immigration Action Muz Doris
Multimedia
April 24, 2017
The First 100 Days: Immigration Policy in the Trump Administration
Guatemalans EricChan Flickr
Articles
April 21, 2017
Inmigrantes Centroamericanos en los Estados Unidos
By Gabriel Lesser and Jeanne Batalova
Attorney General Jeff Sessions in the White House briefing room.
Articles
April 20, 2017
Despite Little Action Yet by Trump Administration on Sanctuary Cities, States and Localities Rush to Respond to Rhetoric
By Muzaffar Chishti and Sarah Pierce

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Recent Activity

Video, Audio
May 4, 2017

Recognizing Changing Enforcement and Crossing Trends at the U.S.-Mexico Border

In the midst of efforts to further ramp up enforcement at the U.S.-Mexico border even as illegal crossings are a fraction of what they were at their peak in 2000, MPI research sketches the changing realities at the border and offers data that should help inform the policy debate. As the Trump administration and Congress consider constructing a border wall, adding thousands of Border Patrol agents, and other policies and measures, this discussion evaluates the state of the border, the effectiveness of various enforcement strategies, current trends in apprehensions and the flows of unauthoriz

Reports
May 2017

A Revolving Door No More? A Statistical Profile of Mexican Adults Repatriated from the United States

The revolving door of return migration is slowing significantly for Mexican adults deported or voluntarily returned by the U.S. government, with the number intending to attempt re-entry dropping 80 percent between 2005 and 2015. Drawing from an official survey of Mexican returnees, this report explores the years of residence repatriated Mexican adults spent in the United States, time in detention, and minor children left behind.

Reports
May 2017

Advances in U.S.-Mexico Border Enforcement: A Review of the Consequence Delivery System

In its first systematic attempt to track the effectiveness of different removal and enforcement strategies that migrants face after being apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border, the Border Patrol in fiscal 2011 launched the Consequence Delivery System (CDS). This report examines the strengths and limitations of CDS, and finds that as stricter measures have been implemented, attempted re-entries have fallen.

Articles
April 26, 2017

Uptick in Northern Border Crossings Places Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement under Pressure

Amid a sense of declining welcome in the United States, growing numbers of asylum seekers have crossed into Canada in recent months, entering illegally to take advantage of a loophole in the Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement. The result? Refugee advocates and politicians in Canada are issuing growing calls to change or suspend the treaty. This article examines the treaty's history, effects, and current challenges.

Fact Sheets
April 2017

The First 100 Days: Summary of Major Immigration Actions Taken by the Trump Administration

During his first 100 days in office, President Trump has taken a sweeping set of actions on immigration, ranging from imposing a travel ban to cutting refugee admissions, "extreme" vetting, and fortifying immigration enforcement at the border and in the U.S. interior. This fact sheet examines the major immigration actions taken to date, legal challenges, and related policy and personnel developments.

Audio
April 24, 2017

The First 100 Days: Immigration Policy in the Trump Administration

As the 100-day milestone for the Trump administration approaches, MPI's Doris Meissner and Muzaffar Chishti are joined by the former Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Julie Myers Wood, and former DHS Assistant Secretary for Policy and Planning C. Stewart Verdery for a discussion of the administration's track record to date on immigration, the policies articulated in its executive orders, legal challenges, reactions by publics and policymakers, and the possible long-term effects of these policies.

Articles
April 21, 2017

Inmigrantes Centroamericanos en los Estados Unidos

La migración centroamericana a los Estados Unidos comenzó en gran números en los años ochenta, impulsada por la inestabilidad política, los desastres naturales y las dificultades económicas. Aproximadamente 3,4 millones de centroamericanos vivieron en los Estados Unidos en 2015, principalmente de El Salvador, Guatemala y Honduras. Dónde viven en los Estados Unidos, su competencia en inglés, su estado legal, las vías de inmigración, y más, están cubiertos en este artículo.

Articles
April 20, 2017

Despite Little Action Yet by Trump Administration on Sanctuary Cities, States and Localities Rush to Respond to Rhetoric

While Donald Trump often pledged as candidate to strip federal funding from jurisdictions—known as sanctuary cities—that do not fully cooperate with federal immigration enforcement, no direct action blocking funding has yet occurred. Still, strong statements from the President and Attorney General have spurred a flurry of responses by state and local governments, some adjusting their policies to cooperate fully, others setting limits.

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