Population Decline of Unauthorized Immigrants Stalls, May Have Reversed

The sharp decline in the U.S. population of unauthorized immigrants that accompanied the 2007-2009 recession has bottomed out, and the number may be rising again. As of March 2012, 11.7 million unauthorized immigrants were living in the United States, according to a new preliminary Pew Research Center estimate based on U.S. government data.

The estimated number of unauthorized immigrants peaked at 12.2 million in 2007 and fell to 11.3 million in 2009, breaking a rising trend that had held for decades. Although there are indications the number of unauthorized immigrants may be rising, the 2012 population estimate is the midpoint of a wide range of possible values and in a statistical sense is no different from the 2009 estimate.

Source: Pew Research Hispanic Trends Project, Population Decline of Unauthorized Immigrants Stalls, May Have Reversed by Jeffrey S. Passel, D’Vera Cohn and Ana Gonzalez-Barrera, September 23, 2013.