Immigration composition and population policy.

Abstract

This paper reviews the current immigration policy and the effects of that policy on demographic and economic characteristics of recent immigrants. The quality of the data on immigration is also discussed. The Immigration Act of 1965 introduced major changes into immigration policy such as the elimination of the national origins system and the making of family reunions a major goal of immigration policy. The age structure stage in the family life cycle and other socioeconomic variables are related to the fertility of the immigrants and their offspring and thus have a long-term impact on population size and composition. Data on annual immigrants are collected tabulated and published by the Immigration and Naturalization Service of the Department of Justice. The US has not collected emigration data since 1958. Estimates are made by the Bureau of the Census from reports of countries receiving the US emigrants. Data on immigrants who have left the US is also missing. The foreign-born women have recently had lower fertility rates than native-born women. The number and characteristics of immigrants have to be taken into account in population projections and estimates and social demographic and political implications need to be investigated and weighed in the formulation of policy. Better immigration data are needed however to achieve this goal.