Economics of Immigration

How does immigration help the economy? Immigrants make a significant impact on state and local economies. Learn more about the contributions immigrants make as workers, taxpayers and consumers.

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August 5, 2016
The U.S. is well-represented by its citizens – both native and foreign born. Forty-seven of those competing on Team USA were born outside of the country.
August 4, 2016

The economic and political impact of immigration is often discussed at the national level. This makes sense, especially since immigration is a nationwide issue and a federal responsibility. Yet...

August 1, 2016

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...

July 1, 2016

More than 50 U.S. cities and counties were honored at the White House on Thursday, for their work in creating inclusive and welcoming communities that engage in local immigrant integration efforts...

June 29, 2016

Over the years, more and more economists have come to the conclusion that immigrant workers “complement” the native-born majority of the labor force by bringing different sets of skills and...

June 21, 2016

The U.S.-Mexico border is not simply the dividing line between two separate nations. It is a vast expanse of communities that span both sides of the border, integrating the United States and...

June 1, 2016

New population projections from the University of Virginia’s Demographics Research Group show that in many states in the Northeast and Midwest, growth of the working-age population is slowing due...

May 5, 2016

Several notable developments took place in states across the U.S. over the past several months in 2016. In California, several recently passed immigration-related laws–collectively known as the “...

March 23, 2016

At a time when politicians and others are expressing concern about the U.S.’s refugee resettlement process, two new studies show that refugees want to integrate and are indeed integrating into the...

February 25, 2016

Undocumented immigrants contribute to the U.S. economy in many ways. They fill essential jobs, they sustain U.S. businesses through their purchase of goods and services, and—contrary to popular...

October 25, 2018

With the midterm elections fast approaching, immigration has become—yet again—one of the hottest political topics among candidates and likely voters. Much of the public debate over immigration is...

October 24, 2018

When people feel welcomed into a community, great things often happen that benefit the receiving community and even the nation. When newcomers feel accepted and included in a society, it provides...

October 17, 2018

Insurers have always depended on large numbers of participants to pay into a pool so that those with the highest rates of usage are covered by those with lower rates. In other words, everyone in...

September 20, 2018

Every year, the Census Bureau releases new data from its American Community Survey (ACS), which contains a wealth of information about the characteristics of the U.S. population. Without fail,...

August 29, 2018

The power of the U.S. workforce is that both native- and foreign-born workers complement one another with different and equally needed skill sets. They cannot simply be substituted for one another...

August 14, 2018

America’s generosity is reflected in our immigration system. Throughout our nation’s history (with some shameful exceptions), we have allowed individuals to come to the United States to reunite...

June 28, 2018

The Trump administration is quietly attempting to revamp the U.S. immigration system by circumventing Congress and changing the nation’s immigration policies through new federal regulations. The...

June 12, 2018

Migration based on family ties has long been the foundation of the U.S. immigration system. Yet lawmakers are proposing drastic cuts to family-based immigration in favor of immigrants who come to...

June 12, 2018
Through analysis of data from the decennial census and administrative data from the Immigration and Naturalization Service, this special report examines the earnings gains over time of all immigrants, as well as the earnings gains experienced by family-based immigrants compared to employment-based immigrants.
Publication Date: 
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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