Economics of Immigration

The enforcement of immigration laws is a complex and hotly-debated topic. Learn more about the costs of immigration enforcement and the ways in which the U.S. can enforce our immigration laws humanely and in a manner that ensures due process.

Recent Features

All Economics of Immigration Content

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April 30, 2019
This report uncovers the degree to which contact with immigrants and personal values are associated with views about unauthorized immigrants.
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January 9, 2019
This fact sheet estimates the likely numbers of workers with TPS from these three countries, broken down by the states in which they reside and the industries in which they are employed.
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June 11, 2018
Some confusion exists regarding the economic aspects of family-based immigration. To help unpack those aspects, this report focuses on one of them—namely, the earnings of family-based immigrants.
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September 13, 2017
This fact sheet describes the legal avenues in the United States available to promising entrepreneurs, as well as some of the barriers they face securing immigration status through these paths.
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March 8, 2017
There are nearly 12 million immigrant (foreign-born) women workers in the United States today, comprising just over 7 percent of the total labor force.
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November 18, 2016
From construction workers to gardeners, many low-wage immigrant workers are in fact quite skilled.
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October 24, 2016
This fact sheet provides an overview of the Supreme Court’s decision in Plyler v. Doe and subsequent efforts by states and localities to avoid compliance with the decision.
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April 4, 2016
Undocumented immigrants are paying billions of dollars each year in taxes. In spite of their undocumented status, these immigrants—and their family members—are adding value to the U.S. economy, not...
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February 3, 2016
Understanding what works, and sharing knowledge about effective initiatives to encourage entrepreneurship, will become increasingly important as immigrant entrepreneurs, business owners, and workers...
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December 14, 2015

Americans pride themselves on belonging to a nation of immigrants. In fact, many Americans celebrate not only the traditions of the United States, but the traditions of the countries from which...

September 5, 2019

The U.S. economy is changing—and immigration can play a major role in how it looks in the future. But how immigration shapes the future of the U.S. economy and its workforce is dependent on a...

July 30, 2019

From the highest levels of corporate America to virtually every level of the labor force, immigration creates new jobs in the U.S. economy. The businesses founded by immigrant entrepreneurs...

April 26, 2019

The U.S. population is aging quickly. Baby boomers are retiring en masse and Americans are having far fewer children, on average, than any other time in our history. The median age in this country...

April 22, 2019

Attending a four-year public college or university is out of reach for many students without U.S. citizenship. But thanks to a growing number of new state laws—which make certain students eligible...

April 15, 2019

The survival of the nation’s Social Security system depends upon the taxes paid by each new generation of workers. As older workers enter retirement and draw upon Social Security, the continued...

March 19, 2019

The Trump administration is set to issue a proposed rule that would prevent the spouses of certain high-skilled temporary foreign workers from getting jobs while they are in the United States. The...

January 15, 2019

Small and rural towns across America are increasingly faced with the opportunities and challenges that come with settling new immigrants. In nearly 3,000 rural American towns, the immigrant...

December 6, 2018

Advocates of immigrant rights decry working in what feels like the age of the fact-free debate. A debate driven in large part by leaders willing to cherry-pick facts on immigration that encourage...

October 8, 2017
The White House released its long anticipated, "Immigration Principles and Policies," which lay out many of the already-stated aspirations of the Trump administration on immigration. The laundry list represents a wholesale attack on immigration and immigrants. It includes not only limits on immigration generally, but enables mass deportations and envisions bypassing necessary procedures that protect children and asylum seekers.
September 21, 2016
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NAS) immigration report takes a comprehensive look at the fiscal and economic impact of immigration.
January 31, 2012

Washington D.C. – As Missouri faces a $704 million shortfall in fiscal year 2012, state legislat

April 5, 2011

Washington D.C. - Opponents of immigration reform are often quick to differentiate their disdain for unauthorized immigration from their alleged support of legal immigration.

March 24, 2011

Washington, D.C. - As Arizona approaches the one-year anniversary of the passage of SB 1070, the Immigration Policy Center and Center for American Progress

March 10, 2011

Washington D.C. - Late Friday night, the Utah Legislature passed three immigration-related bills that await Governor Herbert's signature or veto.

February 28, 2011

Washington D.C. - In cooperation with the Immigration Policy Center, the British Council and the Migration Policy Group release a new study today which reviews and

January 5, 2011

Washington, D.C. - Today, State Legislators for Legal Immigration (SLLI), a coalition of state legislators, revealed their plan to challenge the

December 16, 2010

Washington D.C. - Today, a group of state legislators from Colorado, Massachusetts, Maine, Texas, and Utah participated in a briefing to share their support for fe

October 5, 2022
While DACA will continue to temporarily remain in effect for renewals, the program is on tenuous ground as its legality is again tested before a Texas trial court hostile to immigrants.
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September 29, 2022
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October 4, 2022
With the 2022 midterm elections on the horizon, our interactive map uses data to show which states’ electorates are changing most rapidly.
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September 21, 2022
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September 21, 2022
To address significant shortages of physicians and other healthcare workers, Texas must establish policies that recruit and retain local talent and give employment possibilities for immigrant...
September 8, 2022
The Biden Administration published new public charge regulations, ensuring that immigrants from all walks of life are welcomed to the United States. The new regulations codify long-standing public charge policy that are reasonable, fair, and legally sound.
July 20, 2022
The American Immigration Council released a report that examines the impact and contributions of immigrant workers in the United States’ meat and dairy industries.
July 11, 2022
New research on released today by the American Immigration Council–in partnership with the Texas Association of Business and the Texas Business Leadership Council–underscores the crucial role immigrants in Texas play in some of the state’s fastest growing and most in demand fields.
Workers on a factory line
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July 13, 2022
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May 7, 2022
This year’s Labor Market Series will explore a variety of issues at the intersection of the U.S. economy and immigration.
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July 11, 2022
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July 11, 2022

New research from the American Immigration Council, The Economic Contributions of Immigrants in Texas, highlights the crucial role of immigrants in the state’s workforce across the manufacturing,...

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June 13, 2022
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June 14, 2022
Foreign-born workers make up a growing share of the country’s STEM workforce and are critical to the country’s innovation, and STEM workers are responsible for many of the cutting-edge ideas and...
June 9, 2022
The American Immigration Council released today a report that examines the role of immigrant entrepreneurs and their children in America’s economic success story. The report, “New American Fortune 500 in 2022: The Largest American Companies and Their Immigrant Roots,” found that 43.8%, or 219 companies, in this year’s Fortune 500 list were founded by immigrants or their children.

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