What we know about unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S.
The unauthorized immigrant population in the United States reached 10.5 million in 2021. That was a modest increase over 2019 but nearly identical to 2017.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
The unauthorized immigrant population in the United States reached 10.5 million in 2021. That was a modest increase over 2019 but nearly identical to 2017.
The unauthorized immigrant population’s size and composition has ebbed and flowed significantly over the past 30 years.
About three-quarters of U.S. adults say undocumented immigrants mostly fill jobs U.S. citizens do not want.
The size of Europe’s unauthorized immigrant population in 2017 was less than half the number in the United States.
The number of Mexican unauthorized immigrants has fallen since its peak of 6.9 million in 2007 and was lower in 2017 than in any year since 2001.
There were 10.5 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. in 2017. The number of Mexican unauthorized immigrants declined since 2007.
Jeffrey S. Passel, senior demographer, on the research techniques used to derive the unauthorized immigrant population estimate in the U.S. and the challenges involved.
In 2016, a third of unauthorized immigrant adults were proficient in English – up from a quarter in 2007.
Unauthorized immigrants make up a quarter of all U.S. foreign-born residents. Our new interactive offers data on unauthorized immigrants by state.
There were 10.7 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. in 2016, down from 12.2 million in 2007. The total is the lowest since 2004 and is tied to a decline in the number of Mexican unauthorized immigrants.
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