Changing Demographics Of Immigrants In The USA

Immigrants arriving in the USA have higher educational qualifications
Immigrants median annual personal earnings have increased over the past decade
After English, Spanish is the second most common language spoken by immigrants

Immigrants in the USA can be categorized as long-term residents and immigrants who have recently entered the country. There are around 44.4 million immigrants in the USA. The profile of immigrants in America ranges from these two categories varies in terms of educational qualifications, income, proficiency in English, etc.

As the US immigration policy changes to favors skilled applicants, the country’s immigrant demographic profile may undergo further changes.

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Immigrants In The USA, US Immigration Reform , Social Security Number — Image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay

In 2017, the foreign-born population touched 44.4 million. This is about 4 times the number of immigrants living in the USA since 1965. Immigrants in the USA account for over 13.6% of the country’s population.

Of the total immigrant population, 7.6 million people or 17% have lived in the USA for less than 5 years. This marks a gradual increase since the drop in immigrant numbers in 2010. On the other hand, 72% of the immigrant population in 2017 had spent over 10 years in the country.

Immigrant In The USA – Educational Levels

The gap in educational qualifications between short-term residents and long-term residents has been widening. Immigrants who have recently entered the country have higher educational qualifications than immigrants who have spent over a decade in the country.

In terms of immigrants over the age of 25 years, 47% of short-term residents held a bachelor’s degree while only 28% of those who have lived in the country for more than 10 years held a similar qualification.

One of the reasons for this is the growing numbers of highly skilled workers and international students. On the other hand, 32% of the Us-born population has a bachelor’s degree or more.

Percentage Of Immigrants Over The Age Of 25 Years With A Bachelor’s Degree Or More

Immigrant Type	2000	2010	2017
Short-term immigrants	32%	36%	47%
Long-term immigrants	22%	25%	28%

Unemployment Rates Of Immigrants In The USA

Both short-term and long-term Immigrants have seen a fall in unemployment rates since 2010. Despite having higher educational qualifications, short-term residents have faced higher unemployment rates than long-term residents.

In 2010, 12.8% of short-term residents were unemployed while 9.7% of long-term residents were unemployed. In contrast, in 2017, 7.1 % of short-term residents were unemployed while 3.9% of long-term residents were unemployed.

Year	Short-term Immigrants	Long-term Immigrants
2010	12.8%	9.7%
2017	7.1%	3.9%

US Immigrants – Earnings

While the earnings of US citizens typically increase with their level of educational qualification, the same cannot be said of immigrants. Though short-term immigrants have higher educational qualifications than long-term immigrants, the latter have higher annual earnings.

In 2017, short-term immigrants had median annual personal earnings of around $24,000 while the figure for long-term residents was around $32,000.

This marked an increase of more than $5,000 for short-term residents since 1990 but a drop of $1,000 for long-term residents in the same period.

Year	Short-term Immigrants	Long-term Immigrants
2010	$18,900	$24,000
2017	$31,400	$32,000

US Immigrants With Proficiency In English

While immigrants who have lived in the country for over 10 years show little change in their command over the English language, English proficiency of immigrants entering the country has been on the rise.

While only 38% of the immigrants who arrived in the USA in 2010 spoke English well, 45% of the immigrants who arrived in 2017 said that they spoke English at home or were able to speak the language well.

Spanish is the most common language other than English spoken by long-term immigrants. This is followed by Chinese and Hindi.

Year	Short-term Immigrants		Long-term Immigrants
	Proficient in English	Not proficient in English	Proficient in English	Not proficient in English
2010	38%	62%	52%	48%
2017	45%	55%	54%	46%

US Immigrants And Source Countries

In 2010, a majority of recent immigrants were from Latin America. However, now, South and East Asia are bridging the gap to meet Latin America as the top source countries for immigrants.

In 2017, Latin America accounted for 38% of short-term immigrants while Asia accounted for 35%. However, in terms of long-term immigrants, Latin America maintains its position at the top with little competition from Asia.

54% of all long-term immigrants are from Latin America and the Caribbean while only 25% are from Asia.

Note: Data source: Pew Research Center

Immigrants In The USA – Population Share