A Profile of the U.S.
Foreign-Born Population

Kevin Deardorff

Chief, Immigration Statistics Staff

U.S. Census Bureau

Population Research Center (PRC) Briefing Washington, DC

December 9, 2003

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Overview

• Immigration Statistics Staff

• Concepts and Data Sources

• Trends in the Foreign-Born Population

• Benefits of the American Community Survey

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Mission -- Immigration Statistics Staff

Mission Statement

To provide up-to-date, relevant statistics and methodologies on the size, characteristics, and impact of international migration to (and from) the United States for use in policy-making decisions and demographic and economic research.

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Concepts and Terminology

Foreign Born and Immigrant

• • Foreign Born – Anyone who is not a U.S. citizen at birth, including immigrants, legal nonimmigrants (temporary migrants), humanitarian migrants, and people illegally present in the United States.

  • Immigrant – Aliens admitted to the U.S. for
    lawful permanent residence, as defined in
    the Immigration & Nationality Act.

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Select U.S. Census Bureau Data Sources

• Current Population Survey (CPS)

• Decennial Census

• American Community Survey (ACS)

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International Migration Items

• Place of Birth (Nativity)

• Parental Nativity

• U.S. Citizenship Status

• Year of U.S. Entry

• Previous Residence

• Ancestry

• Language Spoken at Home

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National Quick Facts: 2000

Source: 1990 Census and Census 2000

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National Quick Facts: 2002

• In 2002, 32 million (12 percent of the U.S. population) were foreign born.

• In 2002, 12 million (37 percent of the foreign born) were U.S. citizens through naturalization.

• 49 percent of the foreign born entered the U.S. between 1990 and 2002.

• Of the 32 million foreign born in 2002, 17 million were from Latin America.

Source: Current Population Survey, (2002) Annual Social and Economic Supplement

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Percent Foreign Born
by World Region of Birth: 2002

Source: American Community Survey 2002

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Percent Foreign Born by Year of Entry and Citizenship Status: 2002

Source: American Community Survey 2002

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Percent of Foreign Born Naturalized
by Year of Entry: 2002
(In Percent)

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Language Spoken at Home
for the Foreign Born: 2002
(Population 5 years and over)

Source: American Community Survey 2002

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English-Speaking Ability of Foreign Born Who Speak Spanish At Home: 2002
(Population aged 5 and older)

Source: American Community Survey 2002

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Regional Population Distribution for Native and Foreign-Born Populations: 2002
(In Percent)

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Percent Foreign Born Within Each State: 2000

Source: Census 2000

Prepared with American FactFinder

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Percent of Foreign Born Who Entered 1990 to 2000 by State: 2000

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Top Five States with the Highest Foreign-Born Population and Highest Rate of Change: 2000

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000

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Top Five Places of 100,000 or More Population With the Highest Number of Foreign Born: 2000

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000

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Top 5 Counties of 250,000 or More Population With the Highest Percent Foreign Born: 2002

Source: American Community Survey 2002

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Age Distribution by Sex for the Native and Foreign-Born Populations: 2002

Native

Foreign Born

Age

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Percent of Population Aged 18 to 64 by Place of Birth: 2002
(In Percent)

Foreign Born

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Percent of Population with Less Than 9th Grade Completed by Place of Birth: 2002
(Population 25 years and over)

Foreign Born

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Percent of Population with a Bachelor’s Degree or Higher by Place of Birth: 2002
(Population 25 years and over)

Foreign Born

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Foreign Born

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Foreign Born

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Percent of Population Below Poverty Level by Place of Birth: 2001
(In Percent)

Foreign Born

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Benefits of the ACS

• Provides national and subnational detail

• Replaces the decennial Long Form

• Provides annually updated data for places of 65,000 or more, when fully implemented

• Allows more detailed information (e.g., geography, population groups and tabulation categories)

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Benefits of the ACS (cont’d)

• Informs annual estimates of international migration component of official population estimates and projections

• Includes smaller standard errors than other federal surveys

• Encompasses wider coverage universe

• Maintains experienced professional staff

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U.S. Government Data on International Migration and the Foreign Born

• U.S. Census Bureau’s Foreign-Born Homepage: http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/foreign.html

• American FactFinder Homepage (Census, American Community Survey, and Population Estimates Data):

http://www.factfinder.census.gov

• U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
  Immigration Statistics Homepage: http://www.immigration.gov/graphics/aboutus/statistics/index.htm

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Contact Information