Brief Overview: Immigration in the U.S.

​The United States has more immigrants than any other country in the world. The U.S. foreign-born population reached a record 44.8 million in 2018 and it continues to rise annually. Most immigrants, approximately, 77% are in the country legally, while it is estimated that almost a quarter are undocumented, according to new Pew Research Center estimates based on census data adjusted for undercount. In 2017, 45% were naturalized U.S. citizens. Some 27% of immigrants were permanent residents and 5% were temporary residents in 2017. Another 23% of all immigrants were unauthorized immigrants. From 1990 to 2007, the unauthorized immigrant population more than tripled in size – from 3.5 million to a record high of 12.2 million in 2007. By 2017, that number had declined by 1.7 million, or 14%. There were 10.5 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. in 2017, accounting for 3.2% of the nation’s population (Pew Research Center, 2020).