U.S. Immigration on the Rise Again

It is normal that during recession, western economies are not so attractive to any kind of immigration as they are during boom times.  The U.S. is no exception.  A recent report by the Brookings Institution has confirmed that the number of immigrants in the U.S. was estimated to have risen by about a half a million in the year that ended in 2009, a jump over the year prior when inbound immigration almost stopped during the recession.

According to the report,

The foreign-born population in the United States increased by 4.5 million in the decade ending in 1980. In the decade ending in 2000, it increased by 11.3 million, bringing the foreign-born population to about 13 percent of the total. In the early 20th century, after the last big wave of immigration to the United States, immigrants had reached 15 percent of the population.

In 2008, immigration came to a standstill, the first big slowdown in decades of surging numbers, according to the report, which was based on estimates by the Census Bureau. The foreign-born population increased by 7.4 million between 2000 and 2009.

Naturally, the geographic impact of the recession can explain the impact in terms of immigration.  The biggest immigration losses were in cities that had boomed in recent years, particularly in the housing industry, including Phoenix, Riverside and San Bernardino in California and Tampa, Fla.

Cities where the recession had less of an effect, including Austin, Tex., Houston, Raleigh, N.C., and Seattle, continued to gain immigrants.  The biggest increases came in smaller metropolitan areas that had little or no immigrant populations before.  Among them were Jackson, Miss., whose foreign-born population grew by half in the two years ending in 2009, Birmingham, Ala., where immigrants increased by a quarter, and Worcester, Mass., and Omaha, which both experienced growth of about 20 percent, according to the report.

While the report does not present any dramatic revelations, it confirms that the U.S. is not as desirable immigration destination during recessions as it is during boom times.  As the U.S. economy picks up steam again, a renewed interest and flow of immigrants is expected.