The Pew Research Center has disclosed that Indians represent the third-largest group of unauthorized immigrants in the United States, numbering approximately 725,000. Mexico and El Salvador precede India on this list. The study reveals that the 10.5 million unauthorized immigrants in the US constitute around three percent of the total population and 22 percent of the foreign-born population.
Data from US Customs and Border Protection indicates a substantial influx of undocumented Indian immigrants, with 6,917 encounters recorded from October 2022 to September 2023. This number sharply increased after the easing of COVID-19 border restrictions, reaching 63,927 encounters in the 2022 fiscal year and escalating to 97,000 encounters this year.
The research notes, “The total number of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. from countries other than Mexico has grown rapidly. In 2021, this population was 6.4 million, up by 900,000 from 2017.” It further observes that almost every world region witnessed a significant rise in the number of unauthorized immigrants in the US from 2007 to 2021, with the most substantial increases from Central America (240,000) and South and East Asia (180,000).
Regarding the geographical distribution of unauthorized immigrants, California, Texas, Florida, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois have the highest concentrations. Notably, only Florida and Washington experienced increases in their unauthorized immigrant populations, while California and Nevada observed declines.
The research also highlights that the lawful immigrant population grew by more than 8 million, reflecting a 29% increase, and the number of naturalized US citizens increased by 49%. In 2021, naturalized citizens constituted about half (49%) of all immigrants in the country.
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