E.g., 04/19/2024
E.g., 04/19/2024
Illegal Immigration & Interior Enforcement

Illegal Immigration & Interior Enforcement

Deportations/Returns
Employment Verification
State & Local Enforcement
Worksite Enforcement
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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.

Recent Activity

7-Eleven in Los Angeles
Articles
January 24, 2018
Shifting Gears, Trump Administration Launches High-Profile Worksite Enforcement Operations
By Muzaffar Chishti, Sarah Pierce, and Jessica Bolter
Coverthumb TrumpFirstYearImmigrationPolicy
Reports
January 2018
Trump’s First Year on Immigration Policy: Rhetoric vs. Reality
By  Sarah Pierce, Jessica Bolter and Andrew Selee
Coverthumb TCM StateLocalResponsses
Reports
January 2018
In the Age of Trump: Populist Backlash and Progressive Resistance Create Divergent State Immigrant Integration Contexts
By  Margie McHugh
Coverthumb_TrumpatOne
Policy Briefs
December 2017
Immigration under Trump: A Review of Policy Shifts in the Year Since the Election
By  Sarah Pierce and Andrew Selee
Migrants on a boat
Articles
December 18, 2017
European Leaders Pursue Migration Deals with North African Countries, Sparking Concerns about Human Costs
By Kate Hooper
ICE agent
Articles
December 15, 2017
Trump Administration Makes Down Payment on Campaign Pledges to Address Illegal Immigration
By Ariel G. Ruiz Soto and Randy Capps
_DREAMer
Commentaries
December 2017
Will DREAMers Crowd U.S.-Born Millennials Out of Jobs?
By  Jeanne Batalova and Michael Fix
AfghanRefugees ZsuzsannaGal UNHCR
Articles
December 12, 2017
Increased Focus on Forced Return of Migrants and Asylum Seekers Puts Many in Peril
By Kathleen Newland and Brian Salant

Pages

_US Cap Buildijng
Policy Beat
August 15, 2014
The Stalemate over Unaccompanied Minors Holds Far-Reaching Implications for Broader U.S. Immigration Debates

When Congress returns from recess in September, lawmakers will need to pick up where they left off on approving an emergency spending bill to address unaccompanied migrant children at the border. This article previews upcoming battles in Congress and analyzes how the recent border crisis is changing the broader immigration debate in the United States.

Ankara
Feature
July 24, 2014
Turkey’s Evolving Migration Identity

Turkey’s migration identity has shifted from being principally a country of emigration and transit to becoming a destination for immigrants and people fleeing conflict. In response, Turkish policymakers recently enacted a comprehensive migration and asylum law that took effect in April 2014. This article examines the new law, which is intended as a significant step toward managing both legal and irregular migration to Turkey, including humanitarian migration.

FE TPS July2014 Haiti
Feature
July 2, 2014
Temporary Protected Status in the United States: A Grant of Humanitarian Relief that Is Less than Permanent
From a massive typhoon in the Philippines last November to the ongoing civil war in Syria, recent global events demonstrate that natural disasters and political strife occur suddenly and often without warning. This article examines the U.S. Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program that grants humanitarian relief to nationals of certain countries embroiled in violent conflict or recovering from natural disaster.
PB June2014 CentAm Migrants
Policy Beat
June 13, 2014
Dramatic Surge in the Arrival of Unaccompanied Children Has Deep Roots and No Simple Solutions

The phenomenon of unaccompanied children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border, typically after an arduous and often dangerous journey through Central America and Mexico, has reached a crisis proportion, with a 90 percent spike in arrivals from last year and predictions of future increases ahead.

SP FRS girls Apr2014
Spotlight
April 28, 2014
Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States

The U.S. immigrant population—estimated at 40.8 million in 2012 — is the nation’s historical numerical high, and it is also the largest foreign-born population in the world. About 20 percent of all international migrants reside in the United States, even as the country accounts for less than 5 percent of global population. This article presents the latest, most sought-after data on immigrants in the United States—by origin, residence, legal status, deportations, languages spoken, and more—in one easy-to-use resource.

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Recent Activity

Articles
January 24, 2018

Shifting Gears, Trump Administration Launches High-Profile Worksite Enforcement Operations

An unannounced sweep of 98 convenience stores by U.S. immigration authorities—resulting in the arrest of 21 unauthorized workers—may signal a new approach to worksite enforcement under the Trump administration, moving away from a strategy of paper-based audits that resulted in higher employer fines and fewer worker arrests. This article explores worksite enforcement over recent decades.

Reports
January 2018

Trump’s First Year on Immigration Policy: Rhetoric vs. Reality

Looking back after one year in office, it is striking how just closely the Trump administration’s actions on immigration have hewed to priorities Donald Trump outlined in an uncommonly detailed policy speech in August 2016. This report revisits those pledges to assess where the administration has made the most and least headway, and what its policy agenda ahead might look like.

Reports
January 2018

In the Age of Trump: Populist Backlash and Progressive Resistance Create Divergent State Immigrant Integration Contexts

As long-simmering passions related to federal immigration policies have come to a full boil, less noted but no less important debates are taking place at state and local levels with regards to policies affecting immigrants and their children. As states are increasingly diverging in their responses, this report examines how some of the key policies and programs that support long-term integration success are faring in this volatile era.

Policy Briefs
December 2017

Immigration under Trump: A Review of Policy Shifts in the Year Since the Election

On the campaign trail, Donald Trump made immigration the centerpiece of his campaign, offering a more detailed policy agenda than on any other issue. In the year since the election that propelled the Republican into the White House, how has the Trump administration’s record matched up with the rhetoric? This policy brief examines the executive orders and other changes to existing policy and practice made during 2017.

Articles
December 18, 2017

European Leaders Pursue Migration Deals with North African Countries, Sparking Concerns about Human Costs

European leaders in 2017 pursued migration partnerships with North African countries, seeking to stem maritime arrivals across the Mediterranean. Italy struck a deal with Libya to provide support in cracking down on illegal migration and smugglers, while Germany signed cooperation agreements with Egypt and Tunisia. Meanwhile, widespread reports of migrant abuse in Libya are prompting questions about the limitations and human costs of these partnerships.

Articles
December 15, 2017

Trump Administration Makes Down Payment on Campaign Pledges to Address Illegal Immigration

In its first year, the Trump administration moved to deliver on some of Donald Trump’s campaign promises on immigration, including ramping up enforcement in the U.S. interior and ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The administration also announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of some countries. This article explores some of the top policy changes.

Commentaries
December 2017

Will DREAMers Crowd U.S.-Born Millennials Out of Jobs?

The debate over the future of DACA participants and the passage of legislation to legalize them and a broader cohort of DREAMers features a number of arguments pro and con. Opposition centers in part on the premise of widespread labor market competition between DREAMers and the U.S. born, particularly minorities. But as as this commentary explains, analysis shows that the case is a weak one.

Articles
December 12, 2017

Increased Focus on Forced Return of Migrants and Asylum Seekers Puts Many in Peril

Governments on the receiving end of migrants and refugees reinforced their commitment to returns in 2017, sending or coercing migrants to move back to impoverished or violent homelands. The Dominican Republic pushed out some 70,000 Haitians and native born of Haitian descent, while more than 500,000 Afghans left Iran and Pakistan. Though many of these migrants chose to return, in practice the line between forced and voluntary returns is blurry.

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