Office of Immigration Statistics

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The Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security under the Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans.

Contents

Since the passage of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Immigration Statistics has had the responsibility to carry out two statutory requirements: 1) To collect and disseminate to Congress and the public data and information useful in evaluating the social, economic, environmental, and demographic impact of immigration laws; and 2) To establish standards of reliability and validity for immigration statistics collected by the department's operational Components.

Introduction

Located within the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans and focused on data collection and analysis, the Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) is positioned to gather information from across the department and the entire federal government and to perform these centralizing analytic and dissemination functions.

The department's operational components need cross-cutting data to perform certain enforcement activities and to adjudicate certain claims. Congress requires regular and comprehensive reporting on immigration benefits, immigration enforcement, border security, and migration inflows. Under the department's analytic agenda, senior leaders use detailed operational data and outcome metrics for strategic planning. Other executive branch actors also rely on empirical analysis to monitor and refine immigration policy. Most importantly, a firm commitment to transparency based on the collection and dissemination of clear and credible immigration data is essential to combat widespread confusion and misinformation about immigration trends, and to contribute to a more informed policy debate.

History

Immigration reporting began with the "Steerage" (or "Passenger") Act of March 2, 1819, which required the Secretary of State to report to each session of Congress on the age, sex, occupation, and origins of passengers on arriving vessels. The Department of State performed these duties until the early 1870s, after which responsibility shifted to the Treasury Department's Bureau of Statistics, followed by the Department of Commerce and Labor in 1903, and then the Department of Labor in 1913. The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) was transferred from the Department of Labor to the Department of Justice in 1940, where it resided until 2003, when the components of INS were subsumed under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Section 103 of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 establishes OIS's modern mandate: in consultation with interested academics, government agencies, and other parties, to provide Congress and the public, on an annual basis, with information about immigration and the impact of immigration laws. Section 701 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 transferred these duties from the Statistics Branch of the Office of Policy and Planning of the INS to the DHS Undersecretary for Management and charged OIS with establishing standards of reliability and validity for immigration statistics. OIS currently sits within DHS's Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans, and collects data from DHS's various operational Components, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), as well as from other Federal agencies such as the Department of Justice, the Department of State, and the U.S. Census Bureau.

Core reports

The Yearbook of Immigration Statistics

The Yearbook of Immigration Statistics is a compendium of tables that provides data on foreign nationals who, during a fiscal year, were granted lawful permanent residence (i.e., admitted as immigrants or became legal permanent residents), were admitted into the United States on a temporary basis (e.g., tourists, students, or workers), applied for asylum or refugee status, or were naturalized. The Yearbook also presents data on immigration enforcement actions, including alien apprehensions, removals, and returns. [1]

Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs)

Lawful permanent residents (LPRs), also known as "green card" holders, are non-citizens who are lawfully authorized to live permanently within the United States. LPRs may accept an offer of employment without special restrictions, own property, receive financial assistance at public colleges and universities, and join the Armed Forces. They also may apply to become U.S. citizens if they meet certain eligibility requirements. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) provides several broad classes of admission for foreign nationals to gain LPR status, the largest of which focuses on admitting immigrants for the purpose of family reunification. Other major categories include economic and humanitarian immigrants, as well as immigrants from countries with relatively low levels of immigration to the United States.

The Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) Annual Flow Reports on LPRs contain information obtained from foreign nationals' applications for LPR status on the number and characteristics of persons who became LPRs during a given fiscal year. [2]

Refugees and Asylees

A refugee is a person outside his or her country of nationality who is unable or unwilling to return to his or her country of nationality because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. An asylee is a person who meets the definition of refugee and is already present in the United States or is seeking admission at a port of entry. Refugees are required to apply for Lawful Permanent Resident ("green card") status one year after being admitted, and asylees may apply for green card status one year after their grant of asylum.

The Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) Annual Flow Reports on refugees and asylees contain information obtained from the Worldwide Refugee Admissions Processing System (WRAPS) of the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration of the U.S. Department of State on the numbers and demographic profiles of persons admitted to the United States as refugees, and those applying for and granted asylum status during a given fiscal year. [3]

Naturalizations

Naturalization confers U.S. citizenship upon foreign nationals who have fulfilled the requirements Congress established in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). After naturalization, foreign-born citizens enjoy nearly all of the same benefits, rights, and responsibilities that the Constitution gives to native-born U.S. citizens, including the right to vote.

The Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) Annual Flow Reports on naturalization contain information obtained from naturalization applications on the number and characteristics of persons aged 18 years and older who became naturalized US citizens during a given fiscal year. [4]

Nonimmigrant Admissions

Nonimmigrants are foreign nationals granted temporary admission into the United States. The major purposes for which nonimmigrant admission may be authorized include temporary visits for business or pleasure, academic or vocational study, temporary employment, or to act as a representative of a foreign government or international organization, among others.

The Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) Annual Flow Reports on nonimmigrants contain information obtained from I-94 arrival records on the number and characteristics of nonimmigrant admissions to the United States during a given fiscal year. [5]

Immigration Enforcement Actions

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) engages in immigration enforcement actions to prevent unlawful entry into the United States and to apprehend and repatriate aliens who have violated or failed to comply with U.S. immigration laws. Primary responsibility for the enforcement of immigration law within DHS rests with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). CBP enforces immigration laws at and between the ports of entry, ICE is responsible for interior enforcement and for detention and removal operations, and USCIS adjudicates applications and petitions for immigration and naturalization benefits.

The Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) annual Immigration Enforcement Actions reports contain information obtained from CBP and ICE case records and processed by OIS to describe the number and characteristics of foreign nationals found inadmissible, apprehended, arrested, detained, returned, or removed during a given fiscal year. [6]

Population Estimates

The Office of Immigration Statistics occasionally publishes population estimates of a particular subgroup. Population estimates take information on immigration flows and may combine it with other counts or estimates, such as those in the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS), as well as demographic life expectancy tables to give an idea of population size and characteristics in a given year. Terminology, data sources, and methodology may have shifted over time. Current series include population estimates for unauthorized immigrants, nonimmigrants, and lawful permanent residents. [7]

Additional reports

Enforcement Priorities

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) engages in immigration enforcement actions to prevent unlawful entry into the United States and to apprehend and repatriate aliens who have violated or failed to comply with U.S. immigration laws. In 2014, the Secretary of Homeland Security announced a number of measures to strengthen and unify the department's immigration enforcement priorities by concentrating resources on the arrest, detention, and removal of individuals identified as posing a threat to national security, public safety, or border security. The 2014 priorities emphasize criminal convictions over criminal arrests and focus on felonies and significant or multiple misdemeanors over minor infractions of the law. The priorities also focus on forward-looking efforts to further reduce unlawful migration by targeting recent border crossers and those who significantly abuse the visa system. [8]

Immigration Statistics Fact Sheets

In addition to its regularly published yearbook and flow reports, the Office of Immigration Statistics also occasionally publishes various shorter fact sheets on widely varying topics ranging from characteristics of those apprehended at the border in a given time period to reports on immigrants' interstate migration between the acquisition of lawful permanent resident (LPR) status and citizenship. Reports may use Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data or publicly available data from other sources, such as from the U.S. Census Bureau. [9]

Immigration Infographics

Immigration Infographics produced by OIS describe key immigration topics such as the number and characteristics of lawful permanent residents, refugees and asylees, naturalizations, nonimmigrant admissions, and immigration enforcement actions. [10]

Historical Library

The historical library was created in 1987 as part of the legacy Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) History Office. Its mission is to track the agency history and the implementation of federal government immigration policy from 1891—when the federal government first created the Immigration Bureau—through its present time. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is now the government agency that oversees lawful immigration to the U.S. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Immigration and Naturalization Service</span> Former immigration service of the United States (1933–2003)

The United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) was an agency of the U.S. Department of Labor from 1933 to 1940 and the U.S. Department of Justice from 1940 to 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green card</span> Lawful permanent residency in the United States

A green card, known officially as a permanent resident card, is an identity document which shows that a person has permanent residency in the United States. Green card holders are formally known as lawful permanent residents (LPRs). As of 2019, there are an estimated 13.9 million green card holders, of whom 9.1 million are eligible to become United States citizens. Approximately 65,000 of them serve in the U.S. Armed Forces.

TN status is a special non-immigrant classification of foreign nationals in the United States, which offers expedited work authorization to a citizen of Canada or a national of Mexico. It was created as a result of provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement that mandated simplified entry and employment permission for certain professionals from each of the three NAFTA member states in the other member states. The provisions of NAFTA relevant to TN status were then carried over almost verbatim to the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement that replaced NAFTA in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parole (United States immigration)</span> Official permission to enter and remain temporarily in the U.S.

Parole, in the immigration laws of the United States, generally refers to official permission to enter and remain temporarily in the United States, under the supervision of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), without formal admission, and while remaining an applicant for admission.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that administers the country's naturalization and immigration system. It is a successor to the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), which was dissolved by the Homeland Security Act of 2002 and replaced by three components within the DHS: USCIS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The V visa is a temporary visa available to spouses and minor children of U.S. lawful permanent residents. It allows permanent residents to achieve family unity with their spouses and children while the immigration process takes its course. It was created by the Legal Immigration Family Equity Act of 2000. The Act is to relieve those who applied for immigrant visas on or before December 21, 2000. Practically, the V visa is currently not available to spouses and minor children of LPRs who have applied after December 21, 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Visa policy of the United States</span> Policy on permits required to enter the United States and its unincorporated territories

Visitors to the United States must obtain a visa from one of the U.S. diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the visa-exempt or Visa Waiver Program countries. The same rules apply for travel to all U.S. states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, as well as to Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands with additional waivers, while similar but separate rules apply to American Samoa.

An H-4 visa is a United States visa issued to dependent family members of H-1B, H-1B1, H-2A, H-2B, and H-3 visa holders to allow them to travel to the United States to accompany or reunite with the principal visa holder. A dependent family member is a spouse or unmarried child under the age of 21. If a dependent of an H-1B, H-1B1, H-2A, H-2B, or H-3 worker is already in the United States, they can apply for H-4 immigration status by filing Form I-539 for change of status with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Employment authorization document</span> Document issued by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services

A Form I-766 employment authorization document or EAD card, known popularly as a work permit, is a document issued by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that provides temporary employment authorization to noncitizens in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement</span>

The Homeland Security Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement is a subcommittee within the House Homeland Security Committee. The Subcommittee focuses on: border and port security in the northern and southern land, air, and maritime domains; international aspects of border security; DHS policies and operations facilitating lawful trade and travel; CBP staffing and resource allocations at and between air, land, and sea ports of entry; and ICE and USCIS border security activities. Subcommittee maintains oversight of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

The Security Through Regularized Immigration and a Vibrant Economy Act of 2007 or STRIVE Act of 2007 is proposed United States legislation designed to address the problem of illegal immigration, introduced into the United States House of Representatives. Its supporters claim it would toughen border security, increase enforcement of and criminal penalties for illegal immigration, and establish an employment verification system to identify illegal aliens working in the United States. It would also establish new programs for both illegal aliens and new immigrant workers to achieve legal citizenship. Critics allege that the bill would turn law enforcement agencies into social welfare agencies as it would not allow CBP to detain illegal immigrants that are eligible for Z-visas and would grant amnesty to millions of illegal aliens with very few restrictions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">B visa</span> Visitor visa for the United States

A B visa is one of a category of non-immigrant visas issued by the United States government to foreign nationals seeking entry for a temporary period. The two types of B visa are the B-1 visa, issued to those seeking entry for business purposes, and the B-2 visa, issued to those seeking entry for tourism or other non-business purposes. In practice, the two visa categories are usually combined and issued as a "B-1/B-2 visa" valid for a temporary visit for either business or pleasure, or a combination of the two. Nationals of certain countries do not usually need to obtain a visa for these purposes.

Temporary protected status (TPS) is given by the United States government to eligible nationals of designated countries, as determined by the Secretary of Homeland Security, who are present in the United States. In general, the Secretary of Homeland Security may grant temporary protected status to people already present in the United States who are nationals of a country experiencing ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster, or any temporary or extraordinary conditions that would prevent the foreign national from returning safely and assimilating into their duty. Temporary protected status allows beneficiaries to live and, in some cases, work in the United States for a limited amount of time. As of March 2022, there are more than 400,000 foreign nationals in Temporary Protected Status.

The U visa is a United States nonimmigrant visa which is set aside for victims of crimes who have suffered substantial mental or physical abuse while in the U.S. and who are willing to assist law enforcement and government officials in the investigation or prosecution of the criminal activity. It permits such victims to enter or remain in the US when they might not otherwise be able to do so. An advantage that comes along with the acceptance of a U-visa is the individual will have deportation protection which is important when they are collaborating with law enforcement.

Expedited removal is a process related to immigration enforcement in the United States where an alien is denied entry to and/or physically removed from the country, without going through the normal removal proceedings. The legal authority for expedited removal allows for its use against most unauthorized entrants who have been in the United States for less than two years. Its rollout so far has been restricted to people seeking admission and those who have been in the United States for 14 days or less, and excludes first-time violators from Mexico and Canada.

Withdrawal of application for admission is an option that U.S. Department of Homeland Security might offer to an Arriving Alien whereby the alien chooses to withdraw his or her application to enter the United States, and immediately departs the United States. Unlike an order of removal, a withdrawal of application for admission does not create a bar to future entry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements</span>

Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) is a program managed by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a branch of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). SAVE facilitates lookups on the immigration and nationality status of individuals in the United States. It is an intergovernmental initiative designed to help federal, state, tribal, and local government agencies, or by a contractor acting on the agency's behalf, to determine eligibility for benefits, licenses or grants, government credentials, or to conduct background investigations. It is one of two programs that uses the Verification Information System (VIS). The other program is the Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification Program, also known as E-Verify, and is used by employers to verify the immigration status of employees. For additional verification, SAVE relies on the Person Centric Query System (PCQS).

Federal policy oversees and regulates immigration to the United States and citizenship of the United States. The United States Congress has authority over immigration policy in the United States, and it delegates enforcement to the Department of Homeland Security. Historically, the United States went through a period of loose immigration policy in the early-19th century followed by a period of strict immigration policy in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. Policy areas related to the immigration process include visa policy, asylum policy, and naturalization policy. Policy areas related to illegal immigration include deferral policy and removal policy.

The Immigration Examinations Fee Account (IEFA) is an account in the Treasury of the United States into which all revenues collected from fees for immigration and naturalization are deposited, and that is used to fund the costs associated with providing the immigration and naturalization benefits. The account funds most of the operations of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the sub-agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that is tasked with most of the associated work.

References

  1. ↑ "OIS Yearbook". 9 July 2009. Archived from the original on 12 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  2. ↑ "LPRs". 4 April 2016. Archived from the original on 22 September 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  3. ↑ "Refugees and Asylees". 5 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  4. ↑ "Naturalizations". 5 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  5. ↑ "Nonimmigrant Admissions". 5 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  6. ↑ "Enforcement Actions". 22 October 2020. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  7. ↑ "Population Estimates". 14 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  8. ↑ "Enforcement Priorities". 28 December 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  9. ↑ "OIS Fact Sheets". 14 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  10. ↑ "Infographics". 14 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  11. ↑ "Historical Library". Archived from the original on 2017-10-12. Retrieved 2017-10-20.
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