Where Does India Rank on Immigration?

Americans like rankings. The rankings of college football teams help determine the sport’s national champion. Every week, Americans can read the rankings of movies at the box office or which songs or albums have sold the most. Having become Americanized, it is likely immigrants and the children of immigrants are curious about where their family’s country of origin ranks in immigration to the United States.

The 2010 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, compiled by the Office of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland Security, contains a wealth of information, most of which receives little attention in the press. Below I’ve put together some of the highlights of the yearbook and where immigrants from India rank among immigrants from other countries.

Overall Immigration to the United States

In the United States in 2010, 1,042,625 persons obtained legal permanent resident status, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The statistics include people who came from abroad to receive legal permanent resident status in 2010 and also persons here already in another status (i.e., student, temporary worker) who changed their status to receive a green card. As shown in Table 1, the leading countries were Mexico, China (People’s Republic), India, Philippines and the Dominican Republic. Individuals are designated in this tabulation by their country of birth.

Table 1
Immigration to the U.S. (2010) – All Categories, by Country of Birth

Source: Table 10, 2010 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, Office of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland Security. Note: Country designation is by country of birth.

Family Immigration

There are two types of family immigration. Immediate relatives are the spouses, minor children and parents of U.S. citizens. India ranked 5th in 2010 for most individuals immigrating as immediate relatives, behind Mexico, the Philippines, China and the Dominican Republic. (See Table 2)

Table 2
Immediate Relatives – Immigration to the U.S. (2010) by Country of Birth

Source: Table 10, 2010 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, Office of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland Security. Note: Country designation is by country of birth.

The second type of family immigration includes the family-sponsored preference categories: unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens, spouses and children (minor and adult) of legal permanent residents, married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens and siblings of U.S. citizens. As Table 3 shows, India ranked 5th among countries in individuals immigrating to the United States in the family preference categories in 2010.

Source: Table 10, 2010 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, Office of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland Security. Note: Country designation is by country of birth.

Employment-Based Immigration

Table 4 shows India was the leading source country for employment-based immigrants (green card holders), ranking ahead of China, South Korea, Mexico and the Philippines. This reflects the large proportion of H-1B visa holders who were born in India and have worked in the United States while waiting for their priority date to receive permanent residence.

Source: Table 10, 2010 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, Office of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland Security. Note: Country designation is by country of birth. Includes “Other Workers” category in which an undergraduate degree is not required.

Conclusion

The data show that India ranked 3rd overall in immigration to the United States in 2010. Close to half of Indian immigration came through the employment-based preference categories. However, the data show family immigration also remains an important source of immigration to the United States for Indians.