E.g., 01/28/2023
E.g., 01/28/2023
North America

North America

United States
Canada
Mexico

North America is a dynamic migration region, with the United States home to more immigrants than any other country in the world, the Mexico-U.S. corridor the globe's top migration corridor, and Canada a leading destination for migrants. Research collected here focuses on everything from visa policy and border management to immigrant integration, national identity, the demographics of immigrants in the region and their educational and workforce outcomes, and ways to more effectively use migration policy as a lever for national and regional competitiveness.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other leaders at the 2022 Summit of the Americas
Commentaries

The Los Angeles Declaration Could Represent a Big Step for Real Migration Cooperation across the Americas

The Los Angeles Agreement on Migration and Protection signed by leaders from 20 countries across the Western Hemisphere at the 2022 Summit of the Americas marks a significant step forward in creating a common language and a coherent set of ideas for more cooperatively managing migration movements across a region that has seen very significant mobility in recent years, as this commentary explains.

Recent Activity

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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
KoreansNYC YoungSokYun Flickr
Articles
February 8, 2017
Korean Immigrants in the United States
By Jie Zong and Jeanne Batalova
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Policy Briefs
February 2017
Trump Executive Order on Refugees and Travel Ban: A Brief Review
By  Sarah Pierce and Doris Meissner
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Commentaries
February 2017
Leaked Draft of Possible Trump Executive Order on Public Benefits Would Spell Chilling Effects for Legal Immigrants
By  Michael Fix and Randy Capps
Syrians NickOza IRC
Commentaries
January 2017
The U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program Is an Unsuitable Target
By  Kathleen Newland and T. Alexander Aleinikoff
EVENT PH 2016.1.27 Event Photo Brannon, Graham, Meissner
Multimedia
January 27, 2017
Hanging in the Balance: The Future of DACA and the Dreamers

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Policy Beat
April 18, 2012
ICE's Long-Awaited Detention Reform Prompts Questions from Supporters and Detractors

MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on the reaction to ICE's new detention reforms, the Supreme Court's recent decision in Vartelas v. Holder, the designation of Syria for TPS, and more.

Feature
April 12, 2012
The Under-Registration of Births in Mexico: Consequences for Children, Adults, and Migrants

An estimated 7 percent of people in Mexico were not registered with the government at birth and thus lack official record of their name, age, parentage, and citizenship. Without a birth certificate, unregistered Mexican children lack access to education, health care, and basic social services, while unregistered adults face significant economic and civic-integration challenges. Both groups are more vulnerable to being trafficked, exploited, or recruited into criminal groups. This article provides a primer on this important issue, with insight into the experiences of unregistered, unauthorized Mexican immigrants in the United States.

Spotlight
March 21, 2012
Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States

Interested in information on annual naturalization trends, illegal immigration, the geographical distribution of immigrants in the United States, current and historical shares, and a host of other topics? MPI's Jeanne Batalova and Alicia Lee have assembled the latest, most interesting data on immigrants and immigration into one easy-to-use resource.

Policy Beat
March 15, 2012
Bipartisan Measures Urge Use of a Temporary Worker Program to Admit Irish Immigrants

MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on new proposals to amend the E-3 visa program to admit Irish nationals, decisions blocking implementation of more provisions of SB 1070 and HB 56, the Supreme Court's recent decision holding two tax evasion crimes are aggravated felonies, and more.

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Policy Beat
February 29, 2012
Questions Arise with Implementation of Obama Administration's New Prosecutorial Discretion Policy
MPI's Muzaffar Chishti and Claire Bergeron report on the Obama administration's new prosecutorial discretion policy and proposed new rule for unlawful presence waivers, a new plan to promote US tourism, the newly designated H-2A and H-2B countries, and more.

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Recent Activity

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.

Articles
February 8, 2017

Korean Immigrants in the United States

Approximately 1 million Korean immigrants (overwhelmingly from South Korea) lived in the United States in 2015, representing 2.4 percent of the U.S. immigrant population. While earlier waves consisted largely of unskilled laborers and their families, contemporary Korean immigration boasts high socioeconomic standing and Koreans are generally considered among the most successful immigrant groups.

Policy Briefs
February 2017

Trump Executive Order on Refugees and Travel Ban: A Brief Review

This brief examines key provisions of President Trump's recent executive order suspending travel from certain majority-Muslim countries and pausing the U.S. refugee resettlement program, comparing them to current and earlier policy and practice. Presented in an easy-to-use side-by-side chart, the brief gives context to the executive order, which has drawn major scrutiny.

Commentaries
February 2017

Leaked Draft of Possible Trump Executive Order on Public Benefits Would Spell Chilling Effects for Legal Immigrants

A draft executive order apparently under consideration by the Trump administration could have widespread chilling effects for legal immigrants—both those already in the United States as well as prospective ones who seek to reunify with U.S. relatives. It proposes restricting green cards for low-income immigrants and making legal permanent residents more vulnerable to deportation if they use federal means-tested public benefits.

Commentaries
January 2017

The U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program Is an Unsuitable Target

The executive order halting the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program for 120 days and cutting refugee placements has identified a singularly unsuitable target. None of the more than 3 million refugees who have entered the United States through the resettlement program has killed anyone in a terrorist attack on U.S. soil. Singling out refugees is a classic case of blaming the victim and will not make America safer, as this commentary explores.

Video, Audio
January 27, 2017

Hanging in the Balance: The Future of DACA and the Dreamers

As the Trump administration assumes office and the DACA program faces an uncertain future, University of California President Janet Napolitano; Donald Graham, cofounder of TheDream.Us; and Ike Brannon, Visiting Fellow at the CATO Institute join MPI's Doris Meissner for a discussion on the possible impacts of rescinding DACA, particularly in the areas of higher education, philanthropy, and the economy.  

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