Immigration 101
The U.S. immigration system is complex and can be difficult to understand. These resources provide key data points, historical information, and background on hot topics in immigration. Learn the basics about immigration. Immigration in the United States is complex and ever-evolving. Start here to understand the fundamental aspects of immigration policy, its history, and its impact on both individuals and the country at large. Learn commonly used terms about immigration law and how the U.S. immigration system is designed. Explore layered topics like how and whether immigrants can become citizens, as well as what individual protections look like under the law.
How the United States Immigration System Works
- How the Immigration System Works
- June 24, 2024
U.S. immigration law is very complex, and there is much confusion as to how it works. This fact sheet provides basic information…
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Birthright Citizenship in the United States
- Birthright Citizenship
- October 16, 2024
This fact sheet explains birthright citizenship, the Fourteenth Amendment, and its interpretations. Who is…
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Asylum in the United States
- Asylum
- August 27, 2014
Asylum seekers must navigate a difficult and complex process that can involve multiple government…
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Immigration Policy Fifteen Years After 9/11
Fifteen years ago on September 11, 2001, it appeared that comprehensive immigration reform was imminent. The prior week, President Vicente Fox of Mexico visited the U.S. and spoke to President Bush and Congress about the need for reform, and serious momentum was growing. However, the tragic events on September… Read More
How USCIS Calculates Processing Times and How It Could Be Improved
When people think about immigration reform, they usually think about legalization, enforcement, and updating the legal immigration system. However, there are other upgrades to the immigration system that can be implemented by agencies without legislation which would significantly improve efficiency and could ensure that immigrants, their families, and employers receive… Read More
Why Restricting Immigration Won’t Improve Work Opportunities for Natives
Serious economists know that immigrant and native-born workers cannot simply be swapped for one another like batteries. On average, immigrants and the native-born differ in terms of formal education, job experience, and English-language skills. As a result, immigrants and the native-born tend to “complement” each other rather than directly… Read More
The Fossilization of Donald Trump’s Views on Immigration Complete
Recent rumors that Donald Trump was considering “softening” his immigration policy positions were nothing but a ruse. In fact, what has happened in the past few days has been a hardening, and ultimately a fossilization, of Trump’s previously stated positions on immigration. On Wednesday night in Phoenix, Trump gave… Read More
Why Going Home First to Get Legal Status (“Touchback”) Makes No Sense
No one is quite sure where Donald Trump stands on immigration anymore. More precisely, experts are trying to divine what Trump would do with the 11 million undocumented immigrants now living in the country. When he first launched his campaign, Trump proposed a “deportation force” that would, presumably,… Read More
Will a Questionnaire Catch a Terrorist? Donald Trump’s “Extreme Vetting” Plan
One of Donald Trump’s more recent, outrageous ideas having to do with immigration is to conduct what he calls “extreme vetting” of prospective immigrants to the United States. The basic idea is to weed out those would-be immigrants “who support bigotry and hatred,” and the main target of… Read More
How USCIS Estimates Application and Petition Processing Times
This fact sheet provides an overview of how USCIS calculates processing times and the concerns over the accuracy of these estimates. Read More
Donald Trump’s Shortsighted Immigration Plans Won’t Secure the Homeland
As any serious national security expert will tell you, trying to find a potential terrorist by treating all immigrants or Muslims as security risks is far too vague to be effective. Accurate intelligence and effective information-sharing across agencies is the key to national security—not profiling. Yet in a bombastic August… Read More
Lincoln v. Trump on Immigration
Although much has been written about how the party of Abraham Lincoln became the party of Donald Trump, one additional area where these two men parted ways is immigration. The world of today is different from the world in which Abraham Lincoln lived or could have imagined. And I… Read More
Humayun Khan and America’s Debt to Foreign-Born Service Members
Khizr and Ghazala Khan appeared at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia last week to honor their son Capt. Humayun Khan, who was killed in Iraq in 2004 while serving in the U.S. Army. The controversy that followed could not have been predicted with the Republican candidate attacking the… Read More
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