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United States

United States

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Historically a nation of immigrants, the United States is home to nearly 45 million immigrants, who represent 13.7 percent of the total population and play a key role in the economic, civic, and cultural life of the country. The research collected here covers many facets of immigration to the United States, by the numbers and how immigrants fare in the country's classrooms and workplaces, the policies and regulations that shape the admission of new immigrants, the enforcement programs and polices in place at U.S. borders and within the interior, and integration policies and efforts taking place in local communities, in states, and at the federal level.

A naturalization ceremony at the White House.
Articles

Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States

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.

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Policy Briefs

A New Way Forward for Employment-Based Immigration: The Bridge Visa

U.S. employment-based visa policies, last updated in 1990, are not aligned with the country’s current and future labor market needs. This policy brief outlines MPI’s proposal for a new visa pathway that could help the United States better leverage immigration to meet its labor market needs, boost protections for both U.S.- and foreign-born workers, and flexibly adapt to future economic and demographic changes.

Inadmissible migrants, some seeking asylum, are processed by CBP officers
Reports

Outmatched: The U.S. Asylum System Faces Record Demands

The U.S. humanitarian protection system, known for its long history of assisting those in need, has come under incredible pressure in recent years. The asylum adjudications system, which is under-resourced, is struggling to keep up with record asylum seeker arrivals at the U.S.-Mexico border. This report examines the state of the asylum system, including changes under the Biden administration and potential lessons for other countries.

President Joe Biden signs an executive order.
Articles

Biden at the Three-Year Mark: The Most Active Immigration Presidency Yet Is Mired in Border Crisis Narrative

In three years, President Joe Biden has surpassed the number of immigration-focused executive actions taken by the Trump administration throughout its entire four-year term, making his the most active U.S. presidency ever on immigration. Yet the Biden administration has been repeatedly accused of inaction at the U.S.-Mexico border, where record levels of migrant encounters have occurred. This article reviews the Biden track record on immigration.

Recent Activity

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Fact Sheets
March 2017
Facts about English Learners and the NCLB/ESSA Transition in Select States
By  Julie Sugarman and Kevin Lee
Naturalization OldSalemInc Flickr
Articles
March 8, 2017
Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States
By Jie Zong and Jeanne Batalova
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Commentaries
March 2017
The Revised Trump Travel Ban: Who Might Be Affected from the Six Targeted Countries?
By  Sarah Pierce
2017.2.28 PHOTO Reducing Integration Barriers photo from Upwardly Global
Multimedia
February 28, 2017
Reducing Integration Barriers Facing Foreign-Trained Immigrants: Policy and Practice Lessons from Across the United States
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Reports
February 2017
Unlocking Skills: Successful Initiatives for Integrating Foreign-Trained Immigrant Professionals
By  Margie McHugh and Madeleine Morawski
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Policy Briefs
February 2017
Trump Executive Order and DHS Guidance on Interior Enforcement: A Brief Review
By  Sarah Pierce and Randy Capps
NinthCircuit KenLund Flickr
Articles
February 21, 2017
Judge’s Pause of Trump Travel Ban Takes Page from Republican Challenge to Obama Executive Action on DACA
By Muzaffar Chishti and Sarah Pierce
BorderBus AntAndCarrieColeman Flickr
Articles
February 16, 2017
The Evolving and Diversifying Nature of Migration to the U.S.-Mexico Border
By Jessica Bolter

Pages

Spotlight
December 8, 2011
Green Card Holders and Legal Immigration to the United States

More than 1 million people became legal permanent residents (LPRs) in the United States in 2010. Nearly two-thirds of new LPRs are immigrants with family ties in the United States, report MPI’s Carola Balbuena and Jeanne Batalova in this updated look at the latest statistics on legal immigration.

Top Ten
December 1, 2011
A Decade after 9/11, Enforcement Focus Prevails in the United States; Broader Immigration Reforms Remain Stalled

As the United States paused in September to mark the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, the enforcement paradigm that took hold immediately after the terrorist attacks showed no signs of waning.

Top Ten
December 1, 2011
Immigrant Detention under Scrutiny in Australia, United Kingdom, and United States

Public backlash against the detention systems of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States mounted in 2011 with allegations of unacceptable living conditions, abuse, prolonged detention, and government waste.

Top Ten
December 1, 2011
Heading into the 2012 Elections, Republican Presidential Candidates Walk the Immigration Policy Tightrope

The debate season is well underway for the Republican presidential primary races in the United States, and immigration has once again emerged as a highly contentious policy issue.

Top Ten
December 1, 2011
Immigration in United States and Parts of Europe Gives Way to Increased Emigration

Immigration flows this year continued to respond sharply to the economic climate in major immigrant-receiving nations, as many struggled to gain a labor market foothold in the aftermath of the global economic meltdown.

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Recent Activity

Fact Sheets
March 2017

Facts about English Learners and the NCLB/ESSA Transition in Select States

These fact sheets provide a sketch of key characteristics of the foreign-born and English Learner (EL) populations in select states. The fact sheets look at the demographics of these states, discuss EL student outcomes as measured by standardized tests, and conclude with an overview of state accountability mechanisms that affect ELs under relevant provisions of the Every Student Succeeds Act and predecessor No Child Left Behind Act.

Articles
March 8, 2017

Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States

In 2015, 43.3 million immigrants lived in the United States, comprising 13.5 percent of the population. The foreign-born population grew more slowly than in prior years, up 2 percent from 2014. Get sought-after data on U.S. immigration trends, including top countries of origin, Mexican migration, refugee admissions, illegal immigration, health-care coverage, and much more in this Spotlight article.

Commentaries
March 2017

The Revised Trump Travel Ban: Who Might Be Affected from the Six Targeted Countries?

The revised travel ban executive order signed by President Trump on March 6, 2017 significantly narrows an earlier order that provoked chaos at U.S. airports and sparked many legal challenges. Still, as with the earlier version, it represents a sharp cut in the refugee resettlement program and restricts nationals from six majority-Muslim countries from newly entering the United States, as this commentary explores.

Video, Audio, Webinars
February 28, 2017

Reducing Integration Barriers Facing Foreign-Trained Immigrants: Policy and Practice Lessons from Across the United States

Marking the release of a report on the barriers foreign-trained high-skilled immigrants face in the United States, this webinar examines programs and initiatives that assist with credential recognition, employment, and relicensure, as well as recent policy developments. Discussants review recommendations for community-based organizations, employers, and policymakers to expand successful efforts aimed at preventing brain waste. 

Reports
February 2017

Unlocking Skills: Successful Initiatives for Integrating Foreign-Trained Immigrant Professionals

Nearly 2 million college-educated immigrants in the United States, more than half coming with academic and professional credentials, are unable to fully utilize their professional skills and instead are stuck in low-skilled work or are unemployed. This report explores a range of programs and policies that are providing cutting-edge career navigation, relicensing, gap filling, and job search assistance to remedy this brain waste.

Policy Briefs
February 2017

Trump Executive Order and DHS Guidance on Interior Enforcement: A Brief Review

This brief outlines key provisions in an executive order signed by President Trump that makes sweeping changes to immigration enforcement in the U.S. interior, including significantly broadening the categories of unauthorized immigrants who are priorities for removal. The brief examines the executive order and accompanying Department of Homeland Security guidance, comparing them to prior policy and practice.

Articles
February 21, 2017

Judge’s Pause of Trump Travel Ban Takes Page from Republican Challenge to Obama Executive Action on DACA

The decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to halt President Trump's controversial executive order on immigration and refugee resettlement has strong legal parallels to an earlier injunction, which blocked a very different Obama administration initiative on immigration two years ago in a challenge mounted by Republican governors. The two cases have brought new focus to the limits of executive authority in the immigration arena.

Articles
February 16, 2017

The Evolving and Diversifying Nature of Migration to the U.S.-Mexico Border

Two significant migration shifts at the U.S.-Mexico border have been obscured by talk of walls and further border security: Mexicans no longer represent the top unauthorized crossers, replaced by Central Americans seeking protection, and flows are diversifying with increased arrivals of Cubans, Haitians, Asians, and Africans. This article sketches the evolving trends, which have key implications for U.S. and regional migration policy.

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