Despite recent decline, the foreign born from Mexico remains the largest immigrant group

The foreign-born population reached 40.8 million in 2012, accounting for 13 percent of the 313.9 million U.S. residents, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

Recent growth in the foreign-born population has been relatively moderate, increasing by about 870,000 between 2010 and 2012, or by about 1 percent per year.

In fact, the largest jump in the foreign-born population over the last 5 years — from 38.5 million in 2009 to 40.0 million 2010 — was due in part to an update in the data used to produce the survey estimates. Specifically, in 2010, the statistical controls were based on the results of Census 2010, causing a discontinuity in the trend data, as earlier estimates were based on Census 2000.

Notwithstanding the slow growth in the total immigrant population, the foreign born from Mexico remained the largest of all country-of-birth groups. In 2012, there were 11.6 million foreign born residents from Mexico living in the United States, representing 28 percent of the total foreign-born population. As growth in the foreign-born population has slowed recently, so too has the size of the foreign born from Mexico, declining by about 148,000 between 2010 and 2012, or by about 1 percent.

The next largest group — 2.3 million foreign born from China — represented just 6 percent of all foreign born. Between 2010 and 2012, the foreign born from China increased by 126,000, or by about 5 percent.

In addition to Mexico and China, there were four additional country-of-birth groups with more than 1 million residents living in the United States, including India, the Philippines, El Salvador, Vietnam, Cuba and Korea.

The state with the largest foreign-born population was California, with 10.4 million. Five other states had over 1 million each, including New York (4.4 million), Texas (4.3 million), Florida (3.7 million), New Jersey (1.9 million), and Illinois (1.8 million).

Elizabeth M. Grieco
American University
November 11, 2013