Illegal Immigration & Interior Enforcement

lllegal immigration is a phenomenon confronted by many major immigrant-receiving countries, one that vexes policymakers and publics alike. While much of the focus may be on border enforcement, there are an array of interior enforcement policies aimed at identifying unauthorized immigrants for removal, including worksite enforcement, employment verification, jail-house screening, and state and local law enforcement activity. The research below delves into many facets of illegal immigration and enforcement occcuring away from national borders.

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Articles August 2, 2023 In the Twilight Zone: Record Number of U.S. Immigrants Are in Limbo Statuses By Muzaffar Chishti and Kathleen Bush-Joseph	Multimedia July 25, 2023 Improving Communications in the Voluntary Return and Reintegration Network
Multimedia July 20, 2023 Straining under the Backlog: Fixing a U.S. Immigration Court System in Crisis	Reports July 2023 At the Breaking Point: Rethinking the U.S. Immigration Court System By Muzaffar Chishti, Doris Meissner, Stephen Yale-Loehr, Kathleen Bush-Joseph and Christopher Levesque
Articles July 11, 2023 Inmigrantes colombianos en los Estados Unidos By Diego Chaves-González y Jeanne Batalova	Articles July 11, 2023 Colombian Immigrants in the United States By Diego Chaves-González and Jeanne Batalova
Articles July 5, 2023 Haitians Flee a Nation Nearing Collapse By Emmanuela Douyon	Articles June 28, 2023 Activism on Immigration by U.S. States Is Back, with New Tactics and Different Targets By Muzaffar Chishti and Julia Gelatt

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Reports October 2021 African Migration through the Americas: Drivers, Routes, and Policy Responses By Caitlyn Yates and Jessica Bolter	Reports October 2021 Toward a Better Immigration System: Fixing Immigration Governance at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security By Doris Meissner and Ruth Ellen Wasem
Policy Briefs September 2021 Migration Management and Border Security: Lessons Learned By Alan D. Bersin	Reports August 2021 From Jailers to Case Managers: Redesigning the U.S. Immigration Detention System to Be Effective and Fair By Randy Capps and Doris Meissner
Reports July 2021 Integración socioeconómica de los migrantes y refugiados venezolanos: Los casos de Brasil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador y Perú By Diego Chaves-González, Jordi Amaral and María Jesús Mora	Reports July 2021 Socioeconomic Integration of Venezuelan Migrants and Refugees: The Cases of Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru By Diego Chaves-González, Jordi Amaral and María Jesús Mora
Reports July 2021 Future Scenarios for Global Mobility in the Shadow of Pandemic By Meghan Benton	Policy Briefs May 2021 EU Strategy on Voluntary Return and Reintegration: Crafting a Road Map to Better Cooperation with Migrants’ Countries of Origin By Camille Le Coz

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at a conference in Tampa.

Policy Beat

June 28, 2023

Activism on Immigration by U.S. States Is Back, with New Tactics and Different Targets

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.

Feature

June 6, 2023

In Canada’s French-Speaking Quebec, Immigration Sparks Anxieties about Language and Identity

Canada's ambitions to dramatically increase immigration have met resistance in Quebec, the country's only majority-French province, where many worry their identity is under threat. Provincial officials have sought to fortify the role of the French language in society through academic, immigration, and linguistic policies, but the language nonetheless faces demographic threats, as this article explains.

Banderas de las naciones centroamericanas en una marcha en San Diego.

Spotlight

June 2, 2023

Inmigrantes centroamericanos en los Estados Unidos

Los centroamericanos representan menos de una décima parte de la población de inmigrantes en Estados Unidos. Pero su número se ha multiplicado por diez desde 1980. Este artículo proporciona una mirada integral a esta población.

A double border wall leads to a boat launch in Yuma, Arizona.

Feature

May 31, 2023

Global Spending on Immigration Enforcement Is Higher than Ever and Rising

Budgets for border security and interior immigration enforcement have been on the rise in places including the United States and the European Union. The spending is a result of the heightened focus on securitization by the Global North and has led to a ballooning private industry. This article explains the trend.

An abandoned shoe lies in the mud along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Policy Beat

May 25, 2023

U.S. Border Asylum Policy Enters New Territory Post-Title 42

The United States entered a new era with the end of the pandemic-era Title 42 expulsions policy. The government’s hopes of maintaining order at the U.S.-Mexico border post-Title 42 may be complicated by factors including authorities’ limited capacity, ongoing litigation, and cooperation from other countries. This article reviews the Biden administration's changing border policies and possible challenges ahead.

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Video

September 21, 2020

17th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference

This year’s Immigration Law and Policy Conference examines the immigration policy agenda under the Trump administration, including changes in the asylum system; the vast societal upheaval brought on by COVID-19 and the rising racial justice movement; what the future of U.S. immigration may look like; and many other topics related to U.S. immigration policy.

Video, Audio

August 26, 2020

Excluding Millions: How Trump Administration Changes to the Decennial Census Could Leave Out U.S. Citizens and Immigrants

This conversation, featuring a former U.S. Census Bureau director and other top experts, examines how the many challenges facing the 2020 Census could affect the count and representation of immigrant communities, the difficulties inherent in data matching to determine legal status, and the legal and constitutional issues surrounding the administration’s actions.

Flickr IOM Arrival of Returnees from Khartoum 7201505076_4a40649469_c

Video, Audio

June 25, 2020

Rethinking and Restarting: What Should the Returns Process Look Like Post-Pandemic?

This MPI Europe webinar showcases speakers from Belgium's Fedasil, the French Office of Immigration and Integration, and IOM discussing the counselling of (potential) returnees to increase the uptake of voluntary return—a return option that is generally seen as more humanitarian, practical, and less expensive.

flickr Pompeo and Mexican Foreign Secretary 48339070726_fce1d4d7d7_c (1)

Video, Audio

June 8, 2020

Beyond the Border: U.S.-Mexican Migration Accord Has Ushered in Sweeping Change in Mexico in Its First Year

Amid rising Central American migration to the United States, the U.S. and Mexican governments in June 2019 signed a joint declaration pledging to work together to manage and reduce irregular migration. At the agreement’s one-year anniversary, MPI researchers engaged in discussion with former U.S. and Mexican Ambassadors and a veteran journalist about the changes sparked.

Andrew Selee, Veronica Escobar, Dan Crenshaw, Duncan Wood

Video

April 22, 2020

Immigration and the U.S.-Mexico Border during the Pandemic: A Conversation with Members of Congress

In this bipartisan discussion, two border-state members of Congress—Rep. Veronica Escobar and Rep. Dan Crenshaw—discuss the response to the coronavirus outbreak, how it is affecting the interconnected border region, and what the future might hold.

Recent Activity

Articles

June 5, 2020

A Warm Welcome for Some: Israel Embraces Immigration of Jewish Diaspora, Sharply Restricts Labor Migrants and Asylum Seekers

Israel has a remarkably open immigration system for anyone who can prove Jewish ethnicity. But as this country profile explores, migration is extremely difficult for non-Jews, including asylum seekers. This article describes immigration flows under the Law of Return and examines labor migration and the rise in asylum seekers, reviewing the main challenges that have emerged within the last three decades.

Policy Briefs

June 2020

Un año después del Acuerdo Estados Unidos-México: La transformación de las políticas migratorias mexicanas

El acuerdo de cooperación migratoria firmado por los gobiernos de México y Estados Unidos en junio de 2019 marcó el comienzo de un intenso período de cambio en las políticas mexicanas, con efectos en su frontera compartida. Un año después, el informe examina cambios en los sistemas de control migratorio y protección humanitaria de México. También explora cómo la pandemia del COVID-19 ha afectado la frontera y destaca oportunidades para el desarrollo de políticas en el futuro.

Policy Briefs

June 2020

One Year after the U.S.-Mexico Agreement: Reshaping Mexico’s Migration Policies

The migration cooperation agreement signed by the Mexican and U.S. governments in June 2019 ushered in an intense period of policy change in Mexico, with effects at their shared border. One year on, this brief takes stock of changes in Mexico’s immigration enforcement and asylum systems. It also explores how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the border and highlights opportunities for future policy development.

Fact Sheets

May 2020

Barriers to COVID-19 Testing and Treatment: Immigrants without Health Coverage in the United States

As millions of U.S. workers lose jobs and the health insurance associated with them, Medicaid and similar programs are increasingly important for people seeking COVID-19 testing and treatment. Yet many low-income uninsured noncitizens, including green-card holders, are excluded from such programs because of their immigration status, as this fact sheet explores.

Articles

April 24, 2020

Vulnerable to COVID-19 and in Frontline Jobs, Immigrants Are Mostly Shut Out of U.S. Relief

On the frontlines of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic yet also more disproportionately affected by the virus and with reduced health-care access, immigrants in the United States have largely found themselves blocked from federal economic relief. As states and philanthropic groups seek to plug the gap, this article examines conditions and changing policies around immigration and the coronavirus response.

Video

April 22, 2020

Immigration and the U.S.-Mexico Border during the Pandemic: A Conversation with Members of Congress

Articles

April 16, 2020

A Proxy War on Minorities? India Crafts Citizenship and Refugee Policies through the Lens of Religion

The Modi government's push for a Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens sparked deadly riots and chilled India's 200 million Muslims, who fear being relegated to second-class citizenship—and for some, even statelessness. This article explores actions by Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, the significance of Bangladeshi illegal immigration as a driver, and what a register of citizens in Assam might mean for India.

Reports

April 2020

Immigration and U.S. National Security: The State of Play Since 9/11

The U.S. government has made important progress in shoring up weaknesses at the nexus of immigration and national security since September 11, 2001. But as new threats emerge and evolve—including public-health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic—the question is whether the post-9/11 system is up to the task of meeting these challenges, as this report explores.

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