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.

Recent Activity

Policy Briefs December 2023 What Role Could Digital Technologies Play in the New EU Pact on Migration and Asylum? By Lucía Salgado and Hanne Beirens	Articles December 6, 2023 Often Shut Out of the Financial System, Refugees and Other Migrants Face Economic Integration Challenges By Ting Zhang
Reports November 2023 Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area By Valerie Lacarte, Michael Fix and Jeanne Batalova	Articles November 8, 2023 Haitian Immigrants in the United States By Beatrice Dain and Jeanne Batalova
Commentaries November 2023 The U.S.-Mexico Border Problem Will Not Be “Solved” Until All Parts of the Border Enforcement System Are Properly Resourced By Doris Meissner	Multimedia September 18, 2023 20th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference
Articles October 25, 2023 Can the Biden Immigration Playbook Be Effective for Managing Arrivals via Sea? By Muzaffar Chishti, Kathleen Bush-Joseph, and Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh	Commentaries October 2023 Shifting Patterns and Policies Reshape Migration to U.S.-Mexico Border in Major Ways in 2023 By Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh and Ariel G. Ruiz Soto

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Reports April 2023 A Path to Meeting the Medical and Mental Health Needs of Unaccompanied Children in U.S. Communities By Jonathan Beier and Karla Fredricks	Reports March 2023 Migration, Integration, and Diaspora Engagement in the Caribbean: A Policy Review By Valerie Lacarte, Jordi Amaral, Diego Chaves-González, Ana María Sáiz and Jeremy Harris
Fact Sheets November 2022 A Profile of Low-Income Immigrants in the United States By Julia Gelatt, Valerie Lacarte and Joshua Rodriguez	Policy Briefs October 2022 Diverging Pathways: Immigrants’ Legal Status and Access to Postsecondary Credentials By Jeanne Batalova and Michael Fix
Reports July 2022 Changing the Playbook: Immigrants and the COVID-19 Response in Two U.S. Communities By Randy Capps and Michael Fix	Policy Briefs June 2022 Embedding Reintegration Assistance for Returning Migrants in the Local Context: The Role of Referrals By Ravenna Sohst and Camille Le Coz
Reports June 2022 COVID-19’s Effects on U.S. Immigration and Immigrant Communities, Two Years On By Julia Gelatt and Muzaffar Chishti	Policy Briefs May 2022 Leveraging Predeparture Counseling to Support Returning Migrants’ Sustainable Reintegration By Lucía Salgado

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The U.S. Coast Guard interdicts a vessel with Cuban migrants.

Policy Beat

October 25, 2023

Can the Biden Immigration Playbook Be Effective for Managing Arrivals via Sea?

Amid the highest Caribbean maritime migration levels in a generation, the Biden administration is relying on a carrot-and-stick strategy it honed amid record unauthorized migration at the U.S.-Mexico border. The approach, combining limits on asylum, expanded legal pathways, and international enforcement partnerships, could be increasingly important if maritime migration rises, as this article explains.

Profile

October 18, 2023

Ecuador Juggles Rising Emigration and Challenges Accommodating Venezuelan Arrivals

Ecuador has emerged as a significant destination for Venezuelan migrants, and is also a sizable origin for people heading to the United States and Spain. The Andean nation has found itself enmeshed in the Americas' evolving mobility trends and has responded with a mix of policies that have produced some unforeseen outcomes. This country profile evaluates recent trends and puts them in historical context.

Profile

October 18, 2023

Ecuador hace malabares con la creciente emigración y los desafíos para acomodar la llegada de venezolanos

Ecuador se ha convertido en un destino importante para los migrantes sudamericanos, un país de tránsito para quienes se dirigen al norte y una fuente renovada de emigración. El pequeño país andino se ha visto enredado en las tendencias cambiantes de movilidad de la región y ha respondido a las circunstancias cambiantes con una combinación de políticas que ha producido algunos resultados imprevistos.

Spotlight

October 11, 2023

Vietnamese Immigrants in the United States

The more than 1.3 million Vietnamese immigrants in the United States are the result of nearly 50 years of migration that began with the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. While early generations of Vietnamese immigrants tended to arrive as refugees, the vast majority of recent green-card holders obtained their status through family reunification channels. This article takes a look at the sixth-largest U.S. immigrant population.

Migrantes en la aldea de Canaán Membrillo, en el Tapón del Darién, Panamá.

Feature

October 9, 2023

Cómo el peligroso Tapón del Darién se convirtió en la encrucijada migratoria de las Américas

El paso por el Tapón del Darién ha transformado la migración en las Américas. Cada día, más de 1.000 personas cruzan lo que no hace mucho era un tramo de selva poco transitado entre Colombia y Panamá, la mayoría con la esperanza de llegar a Estados Unidos o Canadá. Es un viaje increíblemente arriesgado. Los gobiernos se han esforzado por responder al creciente movimiento, que se espera que supere los 500.000 cruces en 2023.

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Video, Audio

March 16, 2022

Understanding Drivers of Irregular Migration from Guatemala

This event explores changing migration patterns from Guatemala, how policymakers and development practitioners can help create livelihood options and address other drivers of migration, and the broader lessons for policy approaches in sending and receiving countries that could help better manage migration and provide alternatives to irregular migration.

Video, Audio

March 16, 2022

Comprendiendo los factores que impulsan la migración irregular desde Guatemala

En este evento de presentación del informe, los ponentes hablan sobre los cambios en los patrones de migración desde Guatemala.

Video, Audio

January 19, 2022

Biden at One: Assessing the Administration’s Immigration Record

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

Expert Q&A, Audio

November 24, 2021

Thinking Regionally to Act Locally in Immigration Policy

With migration a dynamic phenomenon in the Americas, the U.S. government increasingly is realizing that migration management should be viewed in a regional context. This requires a new set of policies and ways of engagement with countries in North and Central America, and beyond, as MPI President Andrew Selee discusses with colleague Andrea Tanco in this episode of our World of Migration podcast.

Expert Q&A, Audio

October 29, 2021

U.S. Immigration Reform Denied: Destined to Repeat the Cycle of Failure?

The architecture of the U.S. legal immigration system rests on a 1965 law and was last significantly updated in 1990. While there is widespread agreement that the existing framework does not align with the needs and realities of the 21st century, Congress has proven unable to enact significant legislative reform over the past two decades. How have debates on immigration changed and is achieving bipartisan consensus on this highly charged issue possible today?

Recent Activity

Articles

March 17, 2022

Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States

Need information about U.S. immigration trends or the makeup of the country's immigrant population? This useful, stats-rich article answers the most common questions about the size, shape, and changing nature of the U.S. foreign-born population. It also offers data on immigration enforcement actions, backlogs, and other elements of the U.S. immigration system.

Reports

March 2022

Migración de Huehuetenango en el Altiplano Occidental de Guatemala: Respuestas de políticas públicas y desarrollo

Desde principios de la década de 2010, la migración irregular de Guatemala a Estados Unidos ha aumentado drásticamente. Huehuetenango, un departamento en el Altiplano Occidental de Guatemala, se encuentra entre las principales fuentes de esta emigración. Este estudio examina los patrones y factores impulsores de la emigración de Huehuetenango, así como las posibles estrategias para abordar factores de empuje y creación de alternativas a la migración irregular.

Reports

March 2022

Migration from Huehuetenango in Guatemala’s Western Highlands: Policy and Development Responses

Since the early 2010s, unauthorized migration from Guatemala to the United States has risen dramatically. Huehuetenango, a department in Guatemala’s Western Highlands, is among the top sources of this emigration. This study examines the patterns and drivers of emigration from Huehuetenango, as well as potential strategies to address push factors and create alternatives to irregular migration.

Articles

March 9, 2022

Origin of World’s Largest Migrant Population, India Seeks to Leverage Immigration

With nearly 18 million nationals abroad, India is the origin of more international migrants than any other country and claims the world's largest diaspora. Indian emigration can be traced back to the colonial era, with the British empire dispatching Indian workers across the globe, and has evolved for more than a century in response to global labor demands and geopolitical events. This article offers a comprehensive profile of migration from and to India.

Reports

March 2022

The Challenge of Coordinating Border Management Assistance between Europe and the Maghreb

To address cross-border challenges, the European Union and its Member States have increasingly partnered with neighboring countries, with those in the Maghreb region of northern Africa playing a particularly important role. This report examines the border security situation in the Maghreb and European efforts to work with Maghrebi partners to strengthen border management. It finds a mismatch in priorities stymies cooperation.

Articles

March 2, 2022

The World Is Witnessing a Rapid Proliferation of Border Walls

The number of border walls globally has multiplied at a rapid clip, from fewer than five at the end of World War II to more than six dozen now, with more under construction. Most of the world's border fortifications have been built since the turn of the millennium, and are intended to accomplish a range of functions. This article charts the remarkable growth and normalization of border walls globally.

Articles

February 23, 2022

Mounting Backlogs Undermine U.S. Immigration System and Impede Biden Policy Changes

President Joe Biden has made efforts to overhaul the U.S. immigration system, but could see his administration's agenda slowed by massive backlogs across the immigration system. Case application wait times and immigration court queues have swelled during the COVID-19 pandemic, slowing legal arrivals to the United States and undermining the entire immigration system.

Articles

February 2, 2022

The Increasing Use of Artificial Intelligence in Border Zones Prompts Privacy Questions

Artificial intelligence systems that promise speedier travel and improved tools to halt smuggling and detect illegal entry have been embraced by border officials across the globe. But critics contend they also pose serious privacy concerns, which may become more pronounced as technologies evolve. This article examines the challenges and promises.

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