Illegal immigrants in the U.S.

Illegal immigration to the United States is the violation of United States immigration laws by foreign nationals who enter the country without government permission (i.e., a visa) or, after lawful admittance, remain within the country beyond their period of authorized admission. The United States essentially had open borders until 1924, which meant that all immigrants to the United States up to that point were legal. National Origins Act of 1924 established visa requirements and enacted quotas for immigrants from specific countries.

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has estimated that 11.4 million illegal immigrants lived in the United States in January 2012. According to DHS estimates, "the number of illegal immigrants peaked around 12 million in 2007 and has gradually declined to closer to 11 million." The DHS estimate "is in the same ballpark as several independent organizations that study illegal immigration, including Pew Research Center (11.3 million); the Center for Migration Studies (11 million), which studies migration and promotes policies that safeguard the rights of migrants, and the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates for low levels of legal immigration (11–12 million)."

For the fiscal year 2015, DHS reported that the number of new visa overstays (not counting late departures) was 527,127. For that period, DHS conducted a total of 462,463 removals and returns. For the same time period, ICE removed or returned 235,413 individuals. According to ICE, 166 people died while detained between 2003 and 2016. As of 2015, illegal immigration to the United States continued to decline in comparison to its peak in the year 2000.

In 2012, 52% were from Mexico, 15% from Central America, 12% from Asia, 6% from South America, 5% from the Caribbean, and another 5% from Europe and Canada. Economic reasons are the most popular motivation for people to illegally immigrate to the United States.

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