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3.7.2006

Size and Characteristics of the Unauthorized Migrant Population in the U.S.

Estimates Based on the March 2005 Current Population Survey

by Jeffrey S. Passel, Senior Research Associate, Pew Hispanic Center

Report Materials

Download PDF Complete Report

Fact Sheets and Other Resources

Analysis of the March 2005 Current Population Survey shows that there were 11.1 million unauthorized migrants in the United States a year ago. Based on analysis of other data sources that offer indications of the pace of growth in the foreign-born population, the Center developed an estimate of 11.5 to 12 million for the unauthorized population as of March 2006.

In the March 2005 estimate two-thirds (66%) of the unauthorized population had been in the country for ten years or less, and the largest share, 40% of the total or 4.4 million people had been in the country five years or less. There were 5.4 million adult males in the unauthorized population in 2005, accounting for 49% of the total. There were 3.9 million adult females accounting for 35% of the population. There were 1.8 million children who were unauthorized, 16% of the total. In addition, there were 3.1 million children who are U.S. citizens by birth living in families in which the head of the family or a spouse was unauthorized.
About 7.2 million unauthorized migrants were employed in March 2005, accounting for about 4.9% of the civilian labor force. They made up a large share of all workers in a few more detailed occupational categories, including 24% of all workers employed in farming occupations, 17% in cleaning, 14% in construction and 12% in food preparation.

Fact Sheets and Other Resources

Fact Sheets

June 7, 2006: Hispanic Attitudes Toward Learning English

May 22, 2006: Modes of Entry for the Unauthorized Migrant Population

May 17, 2006: The State of American Public Opinion on Immigration in Spring 2006: A Review of Major Surveys.

April 26, 2006: Estimates of the Unauthorized Migrant Population for States based on the March 2005 CPS

April 13, 2006: The Labor Force Status of Short-Term Unauthorized Workers

April 5, 2006: Recently Arrived Migrants and the Congressional Debate on Immigration

Other Resources

Rise, Peak and Decline: Trends in U.S. Immigration 1992 – 2004
According to this report, the number of migrants coming to the United States each year, legally and illegally, grew very rapidly starting in the mid-1990s, hit a peak at the end of the decade, and then declined substantially after 2001. By 2004, the annual inflow of foreign-born persons was down 24% from its all-time high in 2000.

Unauthorized Migrants: Numbers and Characteristics
The report estimates the number of persons living in families in which the head of the household or the spouse is an unauthorized migrant--13.9 million as of March 2004, including 4.7 million children. Of those individuals, some 3.2 million are US citizens by birth but are living in "mixed status" families in which some members are unauthorized, usually a parent, while others, usually children, are Americans by birthright.