While 67% of lawful immigrants eligible for naturalization had applied for and obtained U.S. citizenship by 2015, this share was only 42% among Mexicans.
Between 2009 and 2014, about 140,000 more Mexican immigrants have returned to Mexico from the U.S. than have migrated here, citing family reunification as the main reason for leaving.
While lopsided majorities of Hispanics and Asian Americans support creating a pathway to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants, two new surveys from the Pew Research Center also show that these groups believe it is more important for unauthorized immigrants to get relief from the threat of deportation.
Overview Nearly two-thirds of the 5.4 million legal immigrants from Mexico who are eligible to become citizens of the United States have not yet taken that step. Their rate of naturalization—36%—is only half that of legal immigrants from all other countries combined, according to an analysis of Census Bureau data by the Pew Hispanic Center, […]