Tracking migration
to the United States
Where they crossed
Encounters are recorded by the Border Patrol sector or Field Office where they occurred. The southwest border accounts for the vast majority of all encounters.
Where they came from
Mexico26%
Central America20%
Other16%
South America13%
Asia10%
Caribbean8%
Europe4%
Africa2%
Why they came
Lawful permanent residents are classified by admission category. The breakdown varies by country of origin: India skews toward employment-based visas, while Central American countries are predominantly asylum and family reunification.
Employment
Family
Asylum
Refugee
Diversity visa
Other
These categories represent how the US government classifies admissions, not necessarily individual motivations. Lawful immigration (USCIS) and border encounters (CBP) are different populations measured by different agencies.
What happened next
Most people who crossed the border were released with a notice to appear in court. A smaller fraction entered the ICE enforcement pipeline: arrested, detained, and in some cases removed.
Outcome breakdown for encountered individuals
0people detained by ICE as of April 2026
of detainees have never been convicted of a criminal offense
TRAC, April 2026
955
arrests per day in March 2026
Deportation Data Project
47
deaths in ICE custody since January 2025
ICE press releases
Who is being arrested?
Immigration only
Pending charges
Convicted
Jan 2025Mar 2026
2,581arrests in Mar 2026
Criminal history
Immigration only59.7%
Pending charges16.3%
Convicted24.1%
Arrest type
Top nationalities
1Mexico540
2Guatemala534
3Honduras415
4Venezuela275
5Colombia223
Government data provided by ICE in response to a FOIA request to the Deportation Data Project. ICE data has known reliability issues documented by UC Berkeley Law and UCLA researchers. Aggregate counts from TRAC at Syracuse University.
What they built
The same population measured by enforcement statistics also sustains industries, pays taxes, and generates economic output. An estimated 8.3 million undocumented workers live in the US, most working informally on farms, construction sites, restaurant kitchens, and in private homes.
What enforcement costs
What immigrants contribute
$170B
Appropriated (OBBBA)
234,236
FY2026 removals YTD
$8.9T
Projected GDP (10yr)
955
Arrests/day (Mar 2026)
$25.7B
Social Security paid
Undocumented workers paid
$0
into Social Security in 2022. They are ineligible to collect benefits. They paid
$0
into Medicare under the same terms. The gap between what they pay in and what they can draw out subsidizes the trust fund for all other beneficiaries.
Social Security Administration, ITEP
Industries sustained
68% foreign-born · 44% undocumented
DOL projected 500K worker shortfall by end of 2026
$110B in revenue from immigrant-started construction businesses
Weakest job growth since crackdown
Job growth in immigrant-heavy sectors trailing rest of economy
Cleaning, childcare, elder care
Enables workforce participation of US-born parents & caregivers
Undocumented
Other immigrant
US-born
Pew, EPI, NAWS, BLS, AIC, Census
Tax contributions
Undocumented households$0
Social Security$25.7B
Medicare$6.4B
Federal income (ITIN)$57.7B
American Immigration Council, ITEP, SSA
GDP with and without immigrants
CBO baseline projection vs. Peterson Institute mass deportation scenario. The gap represents $3.2T in lost output by 2030.
CBO baseline
Mass deportation scenario
CBO, Peterson Institute for International Economics
Net migration likely went negative in 2025 for the first time in decades. Brookings estimates GDP growth reduced by 0.19 to 0.26 percentage points, with consumer spending declining $60 to $110 billion over 2025 and 2026.
Over a 30-year horizon, the Cato Institute estimates all immigrants produce a net fiscal surplus of $0. Without immigrants, public debt would exceed 200% of GDP.
Brookings Institution (January 2026), Cato Institute (February 2026)
By the numbers
0.0Mtotal encounters recorded between FY2016 and FY2025
September 2022
Peak month with
0k
encounters
Mexico
Most common nationality at
0.0M
encounters
0k
Unaccompanied children encountered at the border
0k
Individuals traveling as part of a family unit
175 years of immigration
The foreign-born population in the United States reached 50.2 million in 2024, 14.8% of the total population, matching the record set in 1890. What looks like a surge is, in historical terms, a return to normal.
Source: Migration Policy Institute tabulation of data from U.S. Census Bureau, Decennial Census and American Community Survey. The shaded band marks the period covered by the interactive map above.
Methodology
This site combines data from CBP encounter records, Census ACS foreign-born estimates, USCIS admission statistics, and refugee arrival data. Each measures a different population: crossings, settlement, and legal classification.