How European and U.S. unauthorized immigrant populations compare
The size of Europe’s unauthorized immigrant population in 2017 was less than half the number in the United States.
Jeffrey S. Passel
Publications
Europe’s Unauthorized Immigrant Population Peaks in 2016, Then Levels Off
Most live in Germany, the UK, Italy and France, and about half had arrived in Europe in recent years. Overall, these migrants account for less than 1% of Europe’s total population.
Measuring illegal immigration: How Pew Research Center counts unauthorized immigrants in the U.S.
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.
5 facts about illegal immigration in the U.S.
There were 10.5 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. in 2017. The number of Mexican unauthorized immigrants declined since 2007.
Mexicans decline to less than half the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population for the first time
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.
U.S. unauthorized immigrants are more proficient in English, more educated than a decade ago
In 2016, a third of unauthorized immigrant adults were proficient in English – up from a quarter in 2007.
20 metro areas are home to six-in-ten unauthorized immigrants in U.S.
In 2016, the 20 U.S. metro areas with the most unauthorized immigrants were home to 6.5 million of them, or 61% of the estimated total.
Explore unauthorized immigration by state using our new interactive
Unauthorized immigrants make up a quarter of all U.S. foreign-born residents. Our new interactive offers data on unauthorized immigrants by state.
U.S. Unauthorized Immigrant Total Dips to Lowest Level in a Decade
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.
Number of U.S.-born babies with unauthorized immigrant parents has fallen since 2007
About 250,000 babies were born to unauthorized immigrant parents in the United States in 2016, the latest year for which information is available, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of government data about illegal immigration. This represents a 36% decrease from a peak of about 390,000 in 2007.
