Enforcement

Do undocumented immigrants pay taxes?

Undocumented Immigrants play a crucial role in the U.S. economy, not only through their labor but also through substantial tax contributions that support public services and government programs.

  • In 2022, households led by undocumented immigrants paid $75.6B in total taxes. This includes:
    • $29.0B in state and local taxes
    • $46.6B in federal taxes
  • In 2022, approximately 4.5% of the U.S. workforce was undocumented.
  • 89.8% of undocumented immigrants are of working age.

Our Map the Impact tool shows the tax contributions of immigrants at the national, state and local level.

Recent Features

All Enforcement Content

December 2, 2015

Senator Bernie Sanders, a contender for the Democratic nomination for President, recently released his updated and vastly expanded immigration platform. His initial plan was short on detail;...

November 24, 2015

The government recently began transferring families who have been held in Texas to the Berks County Family Residential Facility in Pennsylvania. Not only have these sudden transfers traumatized...

November 23, 2015

Last summer, the U.S. government decided to prioritize the deportations of unaccompanied children and of families with children in response to increased numbers of children fleeing violence in...

November 18, 2015

Presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (R-FL) recently released his immigration plan entitled, “Cruz Plan to Stop Illegal Immigration: Secure the Border, Restore the Rule of Law, and Protect...

November 13, 2015

A startling number of media accounts continue to demonstrate that the Border Patrol is an agency which is unable to control many of its agents and shows little willingness to provide...

November 9, 2015

Since the incidents in Ferguson, Missouri in August 2014, the use of body-worn cameras has been steadily on the rise. It was a major focus of the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing,...

November 2, 2015

In a report released, the American Immigration Council shines a light on the primary channel through which Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducts immigration enforcement in the...

November 2, 2015

On Friday, a Texas State Court Judge granted a temporary restraining order in Grassroots Leadership v. hs (TFPS) prohibiting TFPS from issuing licenses to family detention facilities in Dilley and...

October 30, 2015

On Thursday, Secretary Jeh Johnson of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) addressed the 12th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference, covering a wide-range of topics, from border...

October 28, 2015

In the discussion around family detention, little attention has been paid to the fact that states play an important role in licensing any facilities where children are cared for. That role has...

July 26, 2018

The House Appropriations Committee passed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill that provides the agency with its budget for Fiscal Year 2019, which begins October 1, 2018. The...

July 26, 2018
"The government’s failure to comply with the court order to reunify the thousands of separated children and parents confirms the administration’s utter disregard for the humane and fair treatment of families coming to our country in search of protection."
July 25, 2018

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced on Tuesday that its agents had delivered I-9 audit notices to more than 5,200 businesses since January 2018, many of which were served in...

July 23, 2018

The cost of the Trump administration’s family separation policy continues to skyrocket. In order to finance its self-made crisis, the administration has dipped into funds that were reserved for...

July 19, 2018

Among the many questions presented by the separation of immigrant families at the border is whether detained parents are being coerced into signing paperwork ensuring their deportation. Without...

July 18, 2018

In its latest attack on asylum seekers, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued new guidance to asylum officers that will make it much harder for victims of domestic violence and...

July 17, 2018

As thousands of asylum-seeking parents were separated from their children in recent months, the Trump administration actively portrayed them as law breakers who must be prosecuted and punished for...

With the end of prosecutorial discretion under the Trump administration, noncitizens living in the United States with a removal order face quick, and almost certain deportation unless they have...

July 16, 2018

President Trump wasted no time after assuming office in signing three executive orders which fundamentally changed the nature of immigration enforcement in the United States: Border Security and...

July 11, 2018

After being order last month by a federal judge to reunite the thousands of children it had separated from their parents under the “zero tolerance” policy, the Trump administration said it would...

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