A study by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) found that the number of foreign-born immigrants in the United States declined by 2.2 million. Nearly three-fourths of the decline consists of illegal immigrants.
“The August data shows a nearly identical number of immigrants as July, so the decline remains 2.2 million through August,” the report says, adding, “The decrease in the foreign-born might be dismissed as a statistical anomaly if only one month showed a much smaller foreign-born population compared to January. But, in fact, multiple months of CPS data show a large decline in the foreign-born after January.”
The report comes as the Department of Homeland Security announced that 2 million illegal immigrants have been removed from the country while others have self-deported. The number encapsulates data from the first 250 days of President Trump’s second term. According to the information, an estimated 1.6 million migrants have voluntarily chosen to leave the United States, while 400,000 have been removed by immigration authorities.
“Ramped-up immigration enforcement targeting the worst of the worst is removing more and more criminal illegal aliens off our streets every day and is sending a clear message to anyone else in this country illegally: Self-deport or we will arrest and deport you,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in September.
In March 2024, CIS detailed the total immigrant population in the United States, finding that there were 51.4 million legal and illegal immigrants residing in the United States, a population consisting of 15.5% of the entire U.S. population.
According to a recent Pew Research Center report, the total number of foreign-born residents fell by 1.4 million between January and June 2025.
