E.g., 06/27/2026
E.g., 06/27/2026

Worksite Enforcement: All Activity

A person uses a digital tool to screen a job applicant

E-Verify has been heralded as a key way to control unauthorized immigration to the United States, but federal efforts to expand the system stalled. There has been movement at the state level over the past decade, though, and there are signs it may rise in prominence again. This article details the history and challenges of E-Verify, and its limited uptake.

President Trump Addresses Joint Session of Congress - March 4, 2025
Multimedia
Thursday, April 24, 2025

Top analysts assess the most consequential immigration actions taken during the first 100 days of President Trump's second term, detail the litigation picture, and analyze some of the early effects of policies on U.S. communities.

Graphic representation of law enforcement personnel taking individuals into custody
Explainers
February 2025

El control migratorio en los Estados Unidos se lleva a cabo en sus fronteras, así como en el interior del país. Esta guía informática tiene respuestas a preguntas comunes sobre la función del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas (ICE, por sus siglas en inglés) de EE. UU., en la identificación de personas para arresto, detención, y deportación a través del sistema de justicia penal y las operaciones en lugares de trabajo y dentro de comunidades estadounidenses.

Graphic representation of law enforcement personnel taking individuals into custody
Explainers
February 2025

Immigration enforcement takes place both at U.S. borders and in the nation’s interior. This explainer answers common questions about how U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement works within the U.S. interior, identifying people for arrest, detention, and removal through the criminal justice pipeline as well as through operations at worksites and within U.S. communities.

President Donald Trump signs an executive action

Within hours of his second inauguration, President Donald Trump moved to dramatically reshape U.S. immigration enforcement and policy. The changes set the stage for mass deportations, all but foreclose access to asylum at the border, and seek to create “shock and awe” that will reverberate around the country. This article examines the early-day policies, possible impacts, and likely headwinds.

President Jimmy Carter at podium
Short Reads
January 2025
By  Doris Meissner and Muzaffar Chishti
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at a conference in Tampa.

Renewed U.S. state activism on immigration has echoes of the early 2010s, when Arizona’s SB 1070 defined a Republican-led push to increase enforcement that was ultimately muted by the courts and public backlash. Newer strategies rely on a novel array of tactics including migrant busing, litigation, and lawmaking. States are also moving in opposite directions, with some expanding rights for unauthorized immigrants, as this article details.

Cover image for Changing the Playbook
Reports
July 2022

U.S. cities and towns have responded to COVID-19 in ways that are as diverse as the communities they aim to support. This report looks at how two very different locations—Worthington, MN, and the greater Houston area—incorporated immigrants into their relief efforts, through partnerships, strategic outreach, targeted assistance, and more. The report also highlights useful lessons for responses to future emergencies.

Cover image for Four Years of Profound Change: Immigration Policy during the Trump Presidency
Reports
February 2022

The Trump administration set an unprecedented pace for executive action on immigration, reshaping many aspects of the U.S. immigration system through changes large and small. This report chronicles the 472 administrative changes enacted during this four-year period—ranging from COVID-19 response measures and immigration enforcement, to humanitarian protection, travel bans, legal immigration and DACA changes, and more.

Multimedia
Wednesday, January 19, 2022

This MPI discussion with leading experts, advocates, and a top official from the administration examines the Biden track record on immigration and what lays ahead

Photo of U.S. President Joe Biden delivering remarks in front of White House.

While Donald Trump’s presidency is perceived as being the most active on immigration, touching nearly every aspect of the U.S. immigration system, President Joe Biden’s administration has far outpaced his predecessor in the number of executive actions taken during his first year in office—even as the pace of change has gone largely unnoticed, as this article explores.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers consult in New York City.

U.S. immigration arrests have declined to the lowest level in years. Going forward, new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement guidelines could further shape how authorities arrest and deport unauthorized immigrants and noncitizens who have committed crimes. This article describes how the Biden administration prosecutorial discretion guidance marks a sharp turn from the approach taken by the Trump administration.

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