Immigration Policy & Law

Immigration legislative and administrative policies, legal statutes and court decisions, and regulations collectively shape nations' immigration systems—from visa allotments and immigrant-selection mechanisms to immigrant integration programs, border controls, and more. As international migration has increased in size and spread and as a number of nations are more flexibly adjusting their immigration systems, the research offered here examines the many permutations of immigration policy and law, often with a comparative lens.

Recent Activity

Multimedia September 27, 2021 18th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference	Articles September 30, 2021 Haitian Migration through the Americas: A Decade in the Making By Caitlyn Yates
Reports September 2021 Healing the Gap: Building Inclusive Public-Health and Migrant Integration Systems in Europe By Jasmijn Slootjes	Articles September 22, 2021 Two Decades after 9/11, National Security Focus Still Dominates U.S. Immigration System By Muzaffar Chishti and Jessica Bolter
Commentaries September 2021 Different Statuses, Different Benefits: Determining Federal Assistance for Afghan Evacuees By Mark Greenberg, Celia Reynolds and Essey Workie	Policy Briefs September 2021 Migration Management and Border Security: Lessons Learned By Alan D. Bersin
Multimedia September 2, 2021 From Immigrant Detention to a More Effective U.S. Immigration Custody System	Articles September 9, 2021 Afghan Immigrants in the United States By Jeanne Batalova

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Policy Briefs February 2017 Trump Executive Order and DHS Guidance on Interior Enforcement: A Brief Review By Sarah Pierce and Randy Capps	Reports February 2017 Firing Up Regional Brain Networks: The Promise of Brain Circulation in the ASEAN Economic Community By Jeanne Batalova, Andriy Shymonyak and Guntur Sugiyarto
Policy Briefs February 2017 Trump Executive Order on Refugees and Travel Ban: A Brief Review By Sarah Pierce and Doris Meissner	Fact Sheets December 2016 State Sociodemographic Portraits of Immigrant and U.S.-Born Parents of Young Children By Maki Park, Margie McHugh and Caitlin Katsiaficas
Fact Sheets December 2016 The Costs of Brain Waste among Highly Skilled Immigrants in Select States By Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, Jeanne Batalova and Michael Fix	Reports December 2016 Untapped Talent: The Costs of Brain Waste among Highly Skilled Immigrants in the United States By Jeanne Batalova, Michael Fix and James D. Bachmeier
Reports November 2016 Towards a Whole-of-Society Approach to Receiving and Settling Newcomers in Europe By Demetrios G. Papademetriou and Meghan Benton	Reports November 2016 Beyond Care and Maintenance: Rebuilding Hope and Opportunity for Refugees (Transatlantic Council Statement) By Demetrios G. Papademetriou and Susan Fratzke

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VenezuelansCucutaStreets ProveaONG Flickr

Top Ten

December 21, 2018

As Venezuelan Crisis Deepens, South America Braces for More Arrivals and Indefinite Stays

With an estimated 3 million people having fled the failing Venezuelan state, and predictions another 2 million could join them in 2019, the capacity of South American neighbors to welcome the arrivals became increasingly stretched in 2018. While the region has largely maintained generous reception policies, there were signs during the year that its tolerance was being tested.

Top Ten

December 11, 2018

Threat of Hard Brexit Looms as Exit Date Nears

With the United Kingdom’s scheduled March 2019 departure from the European Union around the corner and approval of an exit deal by the UK Parliament in deep disarray, the future for approximately 5 million EU nationals living in the United Kingdom and Britons resident in the EU-27 remained unresolved. This article examines the citizens' rights issues that have arisen and what Brexit, hard or otherwise, might bring.

Profile

December 6, 2018

Sweden: By Turns Welcoming and Restrictive in its Immigration Policy

Swedish asylum policy has taken a restrictionist turn since the country received a record-breaking number of asylum seekers in 2015 and after electoral gains by the nationalist, anti-immigration Sweden Democrats pushed the governing coalition to a harder line. Still, other aspects of the country’s migration policy remain welcoming, as this country profile explores.

Migrant processing at San Ysidro port of entry

Policy Beat

November 29, 2018

Trump Administration’s Unprecedented Actions on Asylum at the Southern Border Hit Legal Roadblock

The Trump administration’s latest effort to narrow the ability to apply for asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border hit a legal roadblock within days of implementation, as has been the pattern for much of its immigration agenda. This article examines the actions on asylum, which alongside deployment of active-duty military to the border, are among measures taken to seek to reduce the flow of Central Americans to the United States.

Policy Beat

November 8, 2018

Sessions: The Trump Administration’s Once-Indispensable Man on Immigration

In less than two years as Attorney General, Jeff Sessions oversaw wide-reaching changes to the U.S. immigration system. Even as the zero-tolerance policy, fights with "sanctuary" cities, and DACA termination might be more visible, Sessions' enduring legacy may be his muscular use of a little-noted authority, which he wielded to significantly reshape immigration and asylum policy by referring immigration cases to himself.

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EventPH 2015.3.31 Unaccompanied Child Migration to the United States Flickr CBP Processing Unaccompanied Children

Video, Audio

March 31, 2015

Child and Family Migration to the United States: Continuing Flows and Evolving Responses

A webinar examining the shifting pattern of Central American child and family migration between 2011 and 2014 and expectations for 2015, the policy challenges presented by the rising inflow, and how states, localities, the U.S. government, and other countries in the region are responding to this recent trend.

EventPH 2015.3.26 Womens Labour Migration from Asia and the Pacific

Audio

March 26, 2015

The Asia-Pacific and Women’s Labour Migration

Marking the release of the 12th MPI-IOM Issue in Brief, this event in Bangkok examined the emerging trends in women’s labor migration in the Asia-Pacific region, and the related opportunities and challenges. The audio does not include opening remarks and begins with the author's presentation.

EventPH 2015.3.18 Cross Cutting Needs and Opportunities flickrNewYorkPublicLibrary

Video, Audio

March 18, 2015

Cross-Cutting Needs and Opportunities: Language Access, Funding, Multi-Level Partnerships, and Planning for the Long Term

Part of a series exploring issues likely to be addressed by the new National Integration Plan, this webinar, with perspectives from the cities of New York and Seattle and others examines possible recommendations on federal coordination of local government immigrant integration initiatives, including language access.

EventPH 2015.3.12 Integration Challenges and Opportunities in the Economic Development and Refugee Resettlement Arenas NDC Ashama

Video, Audio

March 12, 2015

Integration Challenges and Opportunities in the Economic Development and Refugee Resettlement Arenas

This webinar, with perspectives from MPI, the WE Global Network, and Lutheran Immigrant and Refugee Service, examines the role of economic development initiatives and refugee resettlement programs/infrastructure in immigrant integration.

EventPH 2015.3.5 Adult Education, English and Skills Training Webinar Carlos Rosario ESL group work

Video, Audio

March 5, 2015

Adult Education, English and Skills Training: Opportunities for Action and Investment in the Most Vital Integration Services

This webinar, with perspectives from MPI, the National Partnership for New Americans, and the National Skills Coalition, looks at the role of adult education and English language and skills training in the immigrant integration process.

Recent Activity

Policy Briefs

October 2020

Supporting Immigrant and Refugee Families through Home Visiting: Innovative State and Local Approaches

Although proven effective in supporting young children and their caretakers, home visiting programs are less likely to see the enrollment of immigrant and refugee families. This brief looks at the strategies some states and counties are using to boost the equity and quality of their home visiting services for these at-risk families, from rethinking how they assess the needs of resident families, to involving communities in program design and service provision.

Articles

October 1, 2020

The U.S. Presidential Campaign Cements Political Parties’ Deepening Schism on Immigration

In the United States, Republicans and Democrats are deeply divided on immigration. President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden have offered sharply diverging policy positions, and the outcome of the election is sure to have profound consequences for the U.S. immigration system. Yet this partisan divide is relatively new. Just two decades ago, the parties were much more united on immigrants’ role in the U.S. economy and society.

Reports

September 2020

Driving Migrant Inclusion through Social Innovation: Lessons for Cities in a Pandemic

Since COVID-19 hit cities across Europe, many have struggled with how to sustain support for migrant inclusion in a time of social-distancing orders and likely budget cuts. This report explores how municipalities and their partners used social innovation to meet the challenges of the 2015–16 spike in arrivals of asylum seekers and migrants, and how those experiences can help localities weather the pandemic and put communities at the center of recovery efforts.

Policy Briefs

September 2020

Brexit on the Backburner: Citizens’ Rights and the Implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement in a Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic hit just weeks after the United Kingdom formally left the European Union, delaying plans to implement the withdrawal agreement’s provisions on citizens’ rights. This policy brief assesses the progress countries have made in setting up systems to adjust the status of mobile EU and UK nationals, as well as steps countries can take to make up for lost time.

Articles

September 16, 2020

College-Educated Immigrants in the United States

Nearly 13 million immigrants have a four-year college degree or better. But these highly educated immigrants are not spread evenly throughout the labor market. They make up disproportionate shares of certain jobs, especially in the science and technology fields, accounting for 45 percent of software developers, 42 percent of physical scientists, and 29 percent of physicians. Yet there are signs that the trends of this population might be changing, as this article explores.

Video, Audio, Webinars

September 10, 2020

The U.S. Immigration Policymaker-in-Chief: The Long History of Executive Authority over Immigration

Top legal scholars discuss the Trump administration’s substantial use of executive power to change the country’s course on immigration, how this compares to past administrations, and how the president’s role in immigration policy could be carefully considered and reimagined.

Video, Audio, Webinars

August 26, 2020

Excluding Millions: How Trump Administration Changes to the Decennial Census Could Leave Out U.S. Citizens and Immigrants

This conversation, featuring a former U.S. Census Bureau director and other top experts, examines how the many challenges facing the 2020 Census could affect the count and representation of immigrant communities, the difficulties inherent in data matching to determine legal status, and the legal and constitutional issues surrounding the administration’s actions.

Fact Sheets

August 2020

Un perfil regional de los migrantes y refugiados venezolanos en América Latina y el Caribe

Los países de América Latina y del Caribe se están enfrentando a un desafío doble. Por un lado, deben manejar un flujo masivo de venezolanos entrando a sus países, mientras que, al mismo tiempo, deben enfocar sus esfuerzos en controlar el virus del COVID-19. Esta ficha técnica presenta un perfil regional de los migrantes y refugiados venezolanos que viajaron a través de 11 países.

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