Annual Compilation of US Immigration Statistics From MPI

PRESS RELEASE
March 10, 2015
Contact: Michelle Mittelstadt
202-266-1910
mmittelstadt@migrationpolicy.org

Some of the Most Sought-After Current and Historical U.S. Immigration Statistics Published in Useful Compilation by MPI's Online Journal

WASHINGTON — The Migration Policy Institute’s (MPI) online journal, the Migration Information Source, has published its annual compilation of some of the most frequently sought-after current and historical U.S. immigration statistics.

A comprehensive and easy-to-use resource, Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States, compiles data from MPI; the U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey, Current Population Survey, and decennial census); the U.S. Departments of Homeland Security and State; Mexico's National Population Council and National Institute of Statistics and Geography; and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

The article answers questions such as: How many people gained green cards last year? How many unauthorized immigrants are in the United States? How many children live with immigrant parents? What jobs do immigrants hold? How many unauthorized migrants have been deported? How do today's top source countries compare to those 50 years ago?

Among other interesting facts, the article reports that:

• Between 2012 and 2013, the immigrant population in the United States increased by about 523,000, or 1.3 percent, to a historic high of 41.3 million. Immigrants and their U.S.-born children now number approximately 80 million persons, or one-quarter of the total U.S. population.
• In 2013, Mexican immigrants accounted for approximately 28 percent of all immigrants in the United States, making them by far the largest foreign-born group in the country.
• Between 1970 and 2013, the percentage of foreign-born workers in the U.S. civilian labor force more than tripled, from 5 percent to 17 percent.
• In 2013, 69,909 refugees were admitted to the United States, a roughly 20 percent increase from 2012.
• In 2013, 55 percent of all newly naturalized citizens lived in one of just four states: California (21 percent), New York (14 percent), Florida (13 percent), and Texas (7 percent).
• The highest shares of the 11.4 million unauthorized immigrants in 2013 resided in California (28 percent), Texas (13 percent), New York (8 percent), and Florida (6 percent).
• The total number of deportations in 2013 was 616,792, including returns and removals, a 5 percent drop from 2012 (648,783).

The article is available from the Migration Information Source, which provides fresh thought on U.S. and international migration trends as well as authoritative data from numerous global organizations and governments. To sign up for the free, bimonthly Source e-newsletter, which includes a monthly feature on U.S. immigration policy developments at the national and state levels, Spotlights providing demographic data on major immigrant populations in the United States, and other features on international and U.S. migration developments, click here.

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The Migration Policy Institute (MPI) is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit think tank in Washington, D.C. dedicated to analysis of the movement of people worldwide. MPI provides analysis, development and evaluation of migration and refugee policies at the local, national and international levels. For more on MPI's work, visit www.migrationpolicy.org.

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