Spotlight on Central American Immigrants in the United States from the Migration Information Source

Here is a report by Migration Information Source.  According to analysis of 2009 federal government data (the most recent year available):

• There were about 2.9 million foreign born from Central America residing in the United States – over half of them in California, Texas, and Florida alone.

• Between 2000 and 2009, the size of the Central American immigrant population doubled or more in 18 states including Georgia, North Carolina, and Maryland.

• More than 606,000 Central American immigrants gained lawful permanent residence in the United States between 2000 and 2009, and nearly 400,000 became citizens.

• Central American immigrants living in the United States were more likely than both the native born and the foreign-born population overall to be of working age and to be participating in the US labor force.

This Spotlight is the latest offering examining immigrant populations in the United States. You can learn more about immigrants from Mexico, China, India, Vietnam, El Salvador, and other countries by visiting our Spotlights archive. The article is available on the Migration Information Source, an online journal of the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank in Washington, DC, that studies immigration issues, trends, and policies in the United States and around the world.

KJ