US Immigrants by the Numbers
How many immigrants live in the US and in Illinois?
• One of every eight Americans is an immigrant (37.5 million out of 299 million).
• Nearly one of every seven Illinoisans is an immigrant (1.77 million out of 12.8 million).
• Nearly one in five residents of the Chicago area (Cook, Lake, McHenry, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, and Will) is foreign born, and more than 18% of the residents in DuPage, Lake, and Kane Counties is an immigrant.
Where do immigrants come from?
• Immigrants from Latin America make up more than half of all immigrants in the US, and nearly half of all immigrants in Illinois and metropolitan Chicago. Mexico alone accounts for 30.7% of all US immigrants and 40.9% of all Illinois immigrants.
• Asian immigrants account for more than one quarter of all immigrants in the US, and nearly a quarter of immigrants in Illinois and metro Chicago. The leading countries of origin in Illinois are India, China, and the Philippines.
• Polish immigrants make up nearly 10% of all immigrants in the city of Chicago and in metro Chicago. Poland ranks second after Mexico as the leading country of origin for immigrants in Illinois, metro Chicago, and the city of Chicago.
How has the US and Illinois immigrant population changed?
• The US immigrant population nearly doubled from 1990 to 2006, from 19.8 million to 37.5 million. The share of the US population who were born abroad rose from 7.9% to 12.5%.
• Despite this growth, the percentage of immigrants among the total population is lower than the historical peaks of a century ago. The share of immigrants among the total population exceeded 13% in each Census from 1860 through 1920.
• The foreign-born population in Illinois rose 86% from 1990 to 2006. The immigrant portion of Illinois’ population rose from 8.3% to 13.8%. Illinois ranks among the top six receiving states for new immigrants, following California, New York, Florida, Texas, and New Jersey.
• More than half of all immigrants in the US and in Illinois arrived in 1990 or after. About one-quarter arrived in 2000 or after.
Illinois immigrants are moving beyond Chicago
Only one-third of all Illinois immigrants live in the city of Chicago, compared to 49% in 1990. Many recent immigrants now bypass Chicago and move directly to the suburbs and rural areas. In Illinois, 30 out of 102 counties saw their immigrant populations double from 1990 to 2000. Cass County saw an increase in its foreign-born population of 1141%.
How many undocumented immigrants live in the US and in Illinois?
The US Department of Homeland Security has estimated that as of January 2006, 11.6 million undocumented immigrants were in the United States. This compares to 8.5 million in 2000. Of the 11.6 million, 6.8 million are from Mexico, 1.6 million from elsewhere in North America, and 1.4 million from Asia. DHS estimates that 550,000 undocumented immigrants live in Illinois, compared to 440,000 in 2000.
Children of immigrants
At least 31 million Americans have at least one parent who is foreign-born, including 12.1 million children under 18 and 5.6 million under age 6. Between 1990 and 2000, the number of children of immigrants under 6 grew by 60 percent nationally, from 3 to 4.7 million.
Approximately 85% of all children of immigrants under 18, and 95% of those under 6, were born in the US and are therefore citizens. Approximately 3.1 million US citizen minor children live in families with at least one undocumented parent or sibling.
Illinois is home to 744,000 minor children of immigrants, including 271,000 under age 6. Approximately 85% of all Illinois children of immigrants, and 96% of those under 6, were born in the US and are therefore citizens.
Children of immigrants make up roughly one-quarter of all minor children in the US and in Illinois, and more than 30% of all minor children in metro Chicago. In Elgin alone, two-thirds of all children under age 6 are children of immigrants.