Immigrant Profiles & Demographics

In an era when publics are seeking to understand how immigration is reshaping populations and local communities, and the effect that newcomers are having on economic, educational, and labor systems, it is imperative to have access to credible and authoritative data. The U.S. and international data-rich research offered here, and data resources offered through our Data Hub, empower users to learn more about the role of immigration in today's world. Browse by region, by type of research, and more. And visit MPI's Data Hub for data tools, maps, and more.

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Commentaries August 2019 Millions Will Feel Chilling Effects of U.S. Public-Charge Rule That Is Also Likely to Reshape Legal Immigration By Jeanne Batalova, Michael Fix and Mark Greenberg	Articles July 11, 2019 Naturalization Trends in the United States By Brittany Blizzard and Jeanne Batalova
Articles June 13, 2019 Refugees and Asylees in the United States By Brittany Blizzard and Jeanne Batalova	Articles June 6, 2019 Migration and Integration in Czechia: Policy Advances and the Hand Brake of Populism By Dušan Drbohlav and Kristýna Janurová
Articles May 16, 2019 Immigrant Veterans in the United States By Jie Zong and Jeanne Batalova	Fact Sheets May 2019 A Profile of Highly Skilled Mexican Immigrants in Texas and the United States By Ariel G. Ruiz Soto and Andrew Selee
Articles May 1, 2019 Migration in the Netherlands: Rhetoric and Perceived Reality Challenge Dutch Tolerance By Joanne van Selm	Fact Sheets April 2019 How Many Unauthorized Immigrants Graduate from U.S. High Schools Annually? By Jie Zong and Jeanne Batalova

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Policy Briefs September 2010 The Demographic Impacts of Repealing Birthright Citizenship By Michael Fix and Jennifer Van Hook	Fact Sheets August 2010 Number and Growth of Students in U.S. Schools in Need of English Instruction, 2009 By Jeanne Batalova and Margie McHugh
Fact Sheets August 2010 States and Districts with the Highest Number and Share of English Language Learners, 2009 By Jeanne Batalova and Margie McHugh	Policy Briefs July 2010 DREAM vs. Reality: An Analysis of Potential DREAM Act Beneficiaries By Jeanne Batalova and Margie McHugh
Reports January 2010 The UK's New Europeans: Progress and Challenges Five Years After Accession By Madeleine Sumption and Will Somerville	Reports January 2010 Protection through Integration: The Mexican Government's Efforts to Aid Migrants in the United States By Laureen Laglagaron
Reports October 2009 Future Immigration Patterns and Policies in the United Kingdom By Will Somerville	Reports September 2009 Migration and the Global Recession By Michael Fix, Demetrios G. Papademetriou, Jeanne Batalova, Aaron Terrazas, Serena Yi-Ying Lin and Michelle Mittelstadt

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Spotlight

November 6, 2019

Sub-Saharan African Immigrants in the United States

The sub-Saharan African immigrant population in the United States is a small, but quickly growing, one. Between 2010 and 2018, the size of the sub-Saharan African population increased 52 percent, far outpacing the overall rise in the foreign born. Immigrants coming from the 51 sub-Saharan countries, including Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia, and Somalia, are diverse in their origins and socioeconomic characteristics, as this Spotlight explores.

Profile

October 10, 2019

Using Fear of the “Other,” Orbán Reshapes Migration Policy in a Hungary Built on Cultural Diversity

The recent rise in xenophobia in Hungary stands in marked contrast with the country's rich migration history. After 390,000 migrants and asylum seekers arrived in 2015, the government of Viktor Orbán issued policies to significantly limit migration and enacted a law criminalizing humanitarian assistance to migrants. This country profile examines Hungary’s migration past and present, tracing the country’s multicultural heritage to the current wave of anti-immigrant sentiment.

Spotlight

August 29, 2019

Brazilian Immigrants in the United States

Approximately 450,000 Brazilian immigrants resided in the United States in 2017, an increase of nearly one-third since 2010. Representing 1 percent of the nation's 44.5 million immigrants, Brazilians tend to have higher educational attainment and household incomes compared to the overall foreign-born population. Get the latest data on Brazilians immigrants, including flows over time, geographic distribution, and more in this Spotlight.

Spotlight

August 15, 2019

Central American Immigrants in the United States

While much attention has been paid to recent Central American arrivals at the U.S.-Mexico border, nearly half of the approximately 3.5 million Central Americans resident in the United States in 2017 arrived before 2000. About one-third are naturalized U.S. citizens, and they tend to participate in the labor force at a higher rate than foreign- and U.S.-born adults. Discover more about this population in this data-rich article.

Spotlight

August 15, 2019

Inmigrantes centroamericanos en los Estados Unidos

Si bien se ha prestado mucha atención a los centroamericanos recién llegados a la frontera entre los Estados Unidos y México, casi la mitad de los aproximadamente 3.5 millones que vivían en los Estados Unidos en 2017 llegaron antes de 2000. Aproximadamente un tercio son ciudadanos estadounidenses y tienden a participar en la fuerza laboral con más frecuencia que otros extranjeros y estadounidenses. Descubra más en este artículo lleno de datos.

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Explainers

February 2019

Explainer: Who Is An Immigrant?

Who is an immigrant? Does that status change if, for example, a foreigner marries a native-born resident or serves in his or her adopted country's military? This explainer answers basic questions about international migrants—who they are, their top destinations, where they come from, how they are counted, and more.

Articles

January 17, 2019

Immigrants from New Origin Countries in the United States

The national origins of new arrivals to the United States are shifting, in ways not always fully appreciated. Recent newcomers are more likely to come from Asia, Central America, and Africa, and less likely to be from Mexico. This article offers key demographic information about the 15 immigrant groups that have experienced the largest growth since 2010, including Indians, Chinese, Colombians, Nigerians, and Bangladeshis.

Reports

November 2018

Minnesota’s Superdiverse and Growing Dual Language Learner Child Population

Dual Language Learners (DLLs) are a growing segment of the Minnesota young child population, and a particularly "superdiverse" one with myriad origins, cultures, and languages—a new reality other states and communities will face. Drawing on interviews with policymakers and service providers, as well as analysis of census data, this report examines what this incredible diversity means for the state’s early childhood policies and programs.

Policy Briefs

November 2018

Gauging the Impact of DHS’ Proposed Public-Charge Rule on U.S. Immigration

Most recent U.S. legal permanent residents could have found themselves at risk of green-card denial had they been assessed under a proposed Trump administration public-charge rule that would apply a significantly expanded test to determine likelihood of future public-benefits use. This analysis finds the effects would fall most heavily on women, children, and the elderly, while potentially shifting legal immigration away from Latin America.

Fact Sheets

November 2018

Settling In: A Profile of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population in the United States

This fact sheet and accompanying interactive data tools provide characteristics of the estimated 11.3 million unauthorized immigrants in the United States, using a unique MPI methodology that assigns legal status to U.S. Census Bureau data. The fact sheet and tools offer statistics on these immigrants’ origins, U.S. destinations, educational attainment, English proficiency, employment, income, home ownership, and more.

Articles

November 7, 2018

South American Immigrants in the United States

South Americans represent a small, but growing share of immigrants in the United States, composing 7 percent of country’s total foreign-born population. Recent growth has been marked by an uptick in arrivals from increasingly failing Venezuela, with an increase of 61,000 Venezuelan immigrants from 2016 to 2017. This article offers an interesting data snapshot of South American immigrants in the United States.

Articles

October 24, 2018

Census Citizenship Question Triggers Legal and Political Fallout

Legal and political controversy surrounds the Trump administration's decision to include a question on citizenship status in the 2020 decennial census, the first such inclusion since the 1950 census. This article examines the administration's conflicting statements about the genesis of the plan, concerns that the decision could affect the accuracy of the census, and legal challenges pending in a number of states.

Articles

October 11, 2018

Mexican Immigrants in the United States

For decades, Mexicans have been the largest immigrant group in the United States. While this is still the case, the Mexican immigrant population is no longer growing at the rate it once was. In fact, between 2010 and 2017, the number of Mexicans in the country first leveled off and then began to decline. This article explores the latest data on Mexican immigrants in the United States.

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