Counting the Overlooked Economic Contributions of Asylum Applicants
Counting the Overlooked Economic Contributions of Asylum Applicants
Lawfully-employed workers applying for asylum in the U.S. have become an economic powerhouse, growing businesses, expanding industries, and contributing to local economies. U.S. workers applying for asylum number at least 2.3 million, contributing more than $108 billion to the U.S. economy each year in addition to $33 billion in combined taxes. Their nationwide labor footprint is similar in total size as the entire state of Oklahoma or the entire Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area. Asylum applicants have become a critically-needed workforce, stabilizing labor markets across several industries and significantly growing the U.S. economy.
The extent of their economic contributions is not hyperbole. They now make up one of the largest immigrant workforces lawfully working in the U.S., more than the combined number of workers on temporary work visas or the combined number of workers with other temporary protections.1 This immigrant workforce has access to a work permit while they wait for their asylum case to be decided, a process which can take several years. With work permits, they can fully work in industries with greatest need to American business. They are skilled carpenters building new homes, hospitality staff supporting weary travelers, truck drivers delivering essential packages, technology specialists securing information systems, compassionate caregivers to children and seniors, and helpful clerks checking out busy customers.
Without their contributions, many goods and services most Americans rely on each and every day would be severely impacted, and in some local areas, severely diminished.
This report offers a detailed analysis of the workforce characteristics and economic contributions of asylum applicants, demonstrating their deep integration in the U.S. economy. The population and economic estimates demonstrate that policy makers must maintain continued access to work permits for asylum applicants. Many sectors of the U.S. economy run on the labor of asylum applicants. Their loss would lead to unnecessary consequences for both asylum applicant families and American families relying daily on their contributions.
No single, large-scale survey of asylum applicants is available, and publicly-available administrative data linking their economic contributions to their immigration status does not exist. Consequently, population and economic estimates in this report for asylum applicants rely on conventional demographic and economic methods used for other immigrant populations. Drawing on the 2024 American Community Survey (ACS)—a large-scale, annual survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau—probable immigration statuses were assigned to all noncitizen respondents based on their social, demographic, household, and economic characteristics, similar to methods used by many research organizations in determining those with a temporarily protected or undocumented immigration status. More specifically for asylum applicants, years in country and nationality variables, according to breakdowns available from administrative data, were used.
With these immigration status assignments for asylum applicants, economic variables in the ACS such as labor force participation, industry of employment, state and metro area of residence, among other demographic and economic measures, can be analyzed, allowing us to estimate the economic impact of asylum applicant workers. Populations in the 2024 ACS were reweighted to reflect the total number of asylum applicants as of the end of fiscal year 2025. Allowing for several months to obtain a work permit, the estimates reflect an asylum applicant population with access to work permits as of early 2026. However, with additional time since data year 2024, the estimates are considered conservative since many would have had a year or two to find a job and build their careers. For more information on how the estimates were calculated, see the report's methodology.
Numbering more than 2.3 million workers, the workforce impact of asylum applicants is considerable. The overwhelming majority of asylum applicant adults are working: some 71% are in the U.S. labor force, higher than the general U.S. public at 66%. More specifically, some 78% of asylum applicants in their prime working years (ages 25–54) are in the labor force; for the total U.S. population it is 85%.
| Worker Characteristic | Asylum Applicant Workers | Total U.S. Workforce |
|---|---|---|
| Labor Force Participation Rate (all adults) | 71% | 66% |
| Labor Force Participation Rate (ages 25–54) | 78% | 85% |
| Median Age | 34 | 41 |
| Middle 50% Age Range (interquartile range) | 27 to 42 | 30 to 53 |
| Married | 46% | 51% |
| Average Number of Children at Home (parents with children at home) | 1.7 | 1.9 |
| Some College Education (ages 25 and older) | 50% | 60% |
| Completion of an Undergraduate Degree or Higher (ages 25 and older) | 33% | 42% |
Source: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data for employed workers. See methodology for more information.
The asylum applicant workforce is young. Their median age is 34 and the middle half of the employed population is between ages 27 and 42. Comparatively, asylum applicants are younger than the total U.S. workforce, whose median age is 41.
On other demographic measures, however, the asylum applicant and total U.S. workforces share several commonalities. Nearly half (46%) of the asylum applicant workforce is married, similar to the overall U.S. workforce (51%). Similarly, the family size of asylum applicant workers among parents with at least one child at home is only slightly lower (average of 1.7 children) as the total U.S. workforce (average of 1.9 children).
Also, post-secondary educational attainment of the asylum applicant workforce is not considerably lower than the total U.S. workforce. Among those who are 25 years or older, half (50%) of the asylum applicant workforce are estimated to have some college education, while one-third (33%) have an undergraduate degree or higher. In the total U.S. workforce, 60% have some college education and 42% have an undergraduate degree or higher.
Most critical for the U.S. economy is the concentration of asylum applicant workers in industries that have experienced persistent labor shortages for several years. For example, an estimated 453,000 are working in construction, representing as much as 3.7% of all construction workers across the nation. Similarly, 360,000 work in leisure and hospitality, making up about 2.4% of all workers in this industry.
Top Industries and Remaining Job Openings
| Industry | Asylum Applicant Workers | Remaining Job Openings |
|---|---|---|
| Construction | 453,000 | 231,000 |
| Leisure and hospitality | 360,000 | 1,041,000 |
| Professional and business services | 343,000 | 977,000 |
| Wholesale and retail trade | 296,000 | 813,000 |
| Manufacturing | 218,000 | 495,000 |
| Transportation, warehousing, and utilities | 206,000 | 1,131,000 |
| Agriculture | 45,000 | N/A |
| Health services | 109,000 | 1,410,000 |
| Education services | 61,000 | 377,000 |
| Other services | 225,000 | 755,000 |
| Total | 2,316,000 | 7,230,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data (asylum applicant workers); January 2026 Bureau of Labor Statistics (job openings). Note: Education services include both private and state/local jobs. N/A refers to unavailable data as job openings are for non-farm industries. See methodology for more information.
Other top industries of employment for asylum applicant workers include: professional and business services (343,000), wholesale and retail trade (296,000), manufacturing (218,000), and transportation, warehousing, and utilities (206,000). Many of these industries have experienced persistent worker shortages. For example, in most industries where asylum applicants are working, there are hundreds of thousands more open jobs than those held by asylum applicant workers. Consequently, arguments that asylum applicants are taking jobs from Americans are unfounded. Plenty of open jobs exist for both the asylum applicant workforce and Americans wanting to work in the same industries. And, with access to work permits, asylum applicant workers are lawfully employed in the U.S., simultaneously lifting up the wages of American workers.
Detailed Industries of Asylum Applicant Workers
| Industry | Asylum Applicant Workers |
|---|---|
| Construction | 453,000 |
| Leisure and Hospitality | 360,000 |
| Food services and drinking places (non-alcohol) | 262,000 |
| Traveler accommodation | 64,000 |
| Amusement, gambling, and recreation | 21,000 |
| Professional and Business Services | 343,000 |
| Services to buildings and dwellings (non-landscaping) | 106,000 |
| Computer systems and related services | 68,000 |
| Landscaping services | 55,000 |
| Employment services | 22,000 |
| Management, scientific, and technical consulting services | 20,000 |
| Wholesale and Retail Trade | 296,000 |
| Warehouse clubs, supercenters, general retailers | 66,000 |
| Supermarkets and grocery stores | 44,000 |
| Grocery wholesalers | 21,000 |
| Clothing and clothing accessories retailers | 18,000 |
| Manufacturing | 218,000 |
| Motor vehicle and motor vehicle equipment | 21,000 |
| Meatpacking and processing | 18,000 |
| Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities | 206,000 |
| Couriers and messengers | 62,000 |
| Warehousing and storage | 43,000 |
| Taxi and limousine services | 37,000 |
| Truck transportation | 32,000 |
| Agriculture | 45,000 |
| Crop production | 30,000 |
| Health Services | 109,000 |
| General medical and surgical hospitals | 20,000 |
| Home health care services | 16,000 |
| Child care services | 16,000 |
| Individual and family services | 15,000 |
| Education Services | 61,000 |
| Elementary and secondary schools | 27,000 |
| Colleges and universities | 27,000 |
| Other Services | 225,000 |
| Services to private households | 33,000 |
| Automotive repair and maintenance | 26,000 |
| Personal services | 12,000 |
| Beauty salon | 10,000 |
| Total | 2,316,000 |
Source: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Note: Education services include both private and state/local jobs. See methodology for more information.
Within industries, asylum applicant workers are concentrated in a handful of critical sectors. For example, nearly three-quarters (73%) of those working in leisure and hospitality are employed in food services, nearly a third (31%) of those working in professional and business services are maintaining and cleaning buildings, nearly half (44%) of those in wholesale and retail trade are working in warehouse clubs, supermarkets, and grocery wholesalers, while more than 4 in 10 (43%) of those in health are providing home, child, and private health services. Most Americans encounter an asylum applicant worker almost every day, at a restaurant, their office building, the grocery store, and for some, at their home taking care of loved ones. Without these work permit holders, these essential services would be lost and immediately felt by Americans.
Interactive Data
Explore Asylum Applicant Worker Data by Metro, State & Region
View workforce statistics and economic contributions for the top 40 U.S. states, top 40 metro areas, and all U.S. regions — broken down by industry, income, and taxes paid.
For a breakdown of top industries of employment for asylum applicant workers by top states, please see Appendix Table 1 (by percent) and Appendix Table 2 (by population). For a breakdown of top industries of employment for asylum applicant workers by top metro areas, please see Appendix Table 3 (by percent) and Appendix Table 4 (by population).
150 days after filing an asylum application, whether affirmatively or defensively, an individual can request an employment authorization document, commonly known as a work permit. The government is supposed to process these initial work permit applications within 30 days. Once processed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), this work permit allows asylum applicants to legally work in the U.S. while they wait for their case to be processed, often involving years of wait time.
The U.S. government is making it more difficult for asylum applicants to obtain and keep a work permit. For example, work permit applications for many citizens of travel banned countries are seeing a pause in the processing of their work permits.2 Also, the government has shortened work permit validity periods, eliminated automatic extensions that prevent lapses while renewal applications are awaiting adjudication, and is charging significantly higher fees for applications.3 And, most recently, the government has proposed pausing new initial work permit processing, lengthening wait times, and increasing discretion to deny work permit applications.4 U.S. businesses and the U.S. public need the lawful work of asylum applicants. Increasing the threat environment to these workers and their legal right to obtain a work permit is not only hurting these asylum applicant workers and their families, but also U.S. consumers and industries who rely on their essential work.
Asylum applicants work across the United States. From Florida to California, and Texas to Illinois, the asylum applicant workforce is measurably contributing in almost every state and metropolitan area. There are 40 U.S. states that are each home to at least 5,000 asylum applicant workers.
There are, however, some noticeable concentrations of asylum applicant residents. For example, more than half a million (541,000) workers are estimated to be employed in Florida alone, amounting to 4.6% of the total workforce in the state. Also, Texas, California, New Jersey, and New York each host more than 100,000 asylum applicant workers.
More specifically in Florida, asylum applicant workers represent a significant share and number of all workers for several industries in the state, including construction (9.9% of all workers, or 100,000 asylum applicant workers), transportation, warehousing, and utilities (7.8% of all workers, or 60,000 asylum applicant workers), and leisure and hospitality (7.5% of all workers, or 99,000 asylum applicant workers) in the state.
Top 40 States of asylum applicant workers
| State | Asylum Applicant Workers |
|---|---|
| Florida | 541,000 |
| Texas | 296,000 |
| California | 237,000 |
| New Jersey | 131,000 |
| New York | 111,000 |
| Georgia | 99,000 |
| North Carolina | 70,000 |
| Illinois | 62,000 |
| Virginia | 50,000 |
| Washington | 48,000 |
| Massachusetts | 42,000 |
| Colorado | 42,000 |
| Maryland | 41,000 |
| Pennsylvania | 38,000 |
| Tennessee | 35,000 |
| South Carolina | 35,000 |
| Arizona | 33,000 |
| Ohio | 32,000 |
| Wisconsin | 31,000 |
| Nevada | 28,000 |
| Michigan | 28,000 |
| Connecticut | 27,000 |
| Utah | 25,000 |
| Indiana | 24,000 |
| Minnesota | 18,000 |
| Kentucky | 18,000 |
| Louisiana | 18,000 |
| Oregon | 15,000 |
| Rhode Island | 14,000 |
| Nebraska | 13,000 |
| Oklahoma | 12,000 |
| Missouri | 11,000 |
| Alabama | 11,000 |
| Arkansas | 10,000 |
| Kansas | 8,000 |
| Idaho | 8,000 |
| New Mexico | 7,000 |
| Delaware | 6,000 |
| Maine | 5,000 |
| Iowa | 5,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Limited to states with 5,000 or more asylum applicant workers. See methodology for more information.
Similarly, many metro economies are driven by asylum applicant workers. From Miami to Boston and Houston to Chicago, businesses in metropolitan areas rely on asylum applicant workers to meet their labor and customer needs.
Metros with a considerably large asylum applicant workforce include the greater Miami metro, with nearly 300,000, making up 8.4% of all workers in the area. A further 111,000 workers are employed in Orlando, representing 6.9% of all workers in the area. Also, the greater New York City region hosts more than 200,000 asylum applicant workers, while more than 100,000 work in the greater Houston metro area.
More specifically, just for Miami, a significant share and number of asylum applicant workers make up the total workforce in Miami, such as in construction (16.1% of all workers, or 49,000 asylum applicant workers), transportation, warehousing, and utilities (13.8% of all workers, or 39,000 asylum applicant workers), and leisure and hospitality (11.6% of all workers, or 45,000 asylum applicant workers).
Top 40 Metro Areas of asylum applicant workers
| Metro Area | Asylum Applicant Workers |
|---|---|
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 298,000 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 218,000 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 124,000 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | 111,000 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 90,000 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 89,000 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 86,000 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD | 65,000 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 55,000 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 39,000 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 39,000 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | 38,000 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 38,000 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 35,000 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 32,000 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 32,000 |
| Austin-Round Rock, TX | 32,000 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE | 29,000 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | 26,000 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | 25,000 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 20,000 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 19,000 |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 19,000 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 19,000 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 17,000 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 16,000 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 14,000 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | 14,000 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | 13,000 |
| Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN | 13,000 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, CA | 13,000 |
| Jacksonville, FL | 13,000 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | 12,000 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 11,000 |
| San Diego-Carlsbad, CA | 10,000 |
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 10,000 |
| Columbus, OH | 8,000 |
| Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 6,000 |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 5,000 |
| Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | 5,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Limited to metro areas with 5,000 or more asylum applicant workers. See methodology for more information.
More than $108 billion annually, the estimated total income of asylum applicants is massive. The spending power of asylum applicants is contributing significantly to the U.S. economy, particularly felt in states and metros across the nation where asylum applicants number the highest or make up a considerable share of state and local workforces within particular industries.
As consumers, asylum applicants are contributing and growing local economies, buying food, paying rent, and seeking services from haircuts to auto insurance for their families. For example, in Florida, where the number of asylum applicants is particularly high, asylum applicants contribute an estimated $22 billion annually to the state's economy. In fact, every $2 of $100 of income for Florida residents is made by an asylum applicant. In Florida, as is the case in other states with a large number of asylum applicant residents, their income is spent in local communities and at local businesses, many of which are owned by Americans.
Asylum applicants are also significantly growing other state economies, including several billions of dollars being poured into their state economies each year, such as Texas ($14.3 billion), California ($12.2 billion), New Jersey ($5.6 billion), and New York ($5.5 billion).
And this spending power is after the payment of $33 billion in combined total taxes each year, including $19 billion in federal and payroll taxes and $14 billion in state and local taxes. Nationally, through the payment of federal and payroll taxes, asylum applicants are contributing nearly the equivalent of some of the nation's smaller, federal agency budgets. At the state level, the total annual state and local tax contributions from asylum applicants in many states is equivalent to the entire budget of a moderately-sized city within that state.
Asylum applicants have total, annual, aggregate incomes in some metropolitan areas that amount to several billions of dollars, such as the greater Miami area ($11.6 billion), the greater New York City area ($10.0 billion), the greater Houston area ($5.6 billion), and the greater Atlanta area ($4.1 billion). And through sales, property, or other taxes, asylum applicants are contributing millions in taxes to local coffers, funding many services for the cities they are living in.
Economic Contributions for Top States
| State | Total Annual Income Contributions to Economy | Total Annual Federal and Payroll Taxes Paid | Total Annual State and Local Taxes Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $557 million | $83 million | $70 million |
| Arizona | $1.5 billion | $250 million | $182 million |
| Arkansas | $446 million | $48 million | $59 million |
| California | $12.2 billion | $2.6 billion | $1.7 billion |
| Colorado | $1.8 billion | $274 million | $214 million |
| Connecticut | $1.2 billion | $189 million | $169 million |
| Delaware | $264 million | $55 million | $28 million |
| Florida | $22.0 billion | $3.2 billion | $2.7 billion |
| Georgia | $4.8 billion | $895 million | $598 million |
| Idaho | $171 million | $19 million | $19 million |
| Illinois | $3.2 billion | $588 million | $475 million |
| Indiana | $1.2 billion | $182 million | $154 million |
| Iowa | $185 million | $22 million | $25 million |
| Kansas | $539 million | $91 million | $73 million |
| Kentucky | $603 million | $66 million | $79 million |
| Louisiana | $807 million | $116 million | $112 million |
| Maine | $203 million | $5 million | $23 million |
| Maryland | $1.9 billion | $359 million | $261 million |
| Massachusetts | $1.8 billion | $337 million | $229 million |
| Michigan | $1.8 billion | $361 million | $207 million |
| Minnesota | $810 million | $147 million | $101 million |
| Missouri | $570 million | $91 million | $66 million |
| Nebraska | $998 million | $169 million | $133 million |
| Nevada | $1.1 billion | $139 million | $129 million |
| New Jersey | $5.6 billion | $963 million | $747 million |
| New Mexico | $387 million | $64 million | $48 million |
| New York | $5.5 billion | $1.1 billion | $901 million |
| North Carolina | $3.4 billion | $522 million | $415 million |
| Ohio | $1.5 billion | $261 million | $199 million |
| Oklahoma | $521 million | $76 million | $67 million |
| Oregon | $679 million | $105 million | $93 million |
| Pennsylvania | $2.7 billion | $514 million | $378 million |
| Rhode Island | $489 million | $82 million | $66 million |
| South Carolina | $1.3 billion | $182 million | $150 million |
| Tennessee | $1.8 billion | $297 million | $228 million |
| Texas | $14.3 billion | $2.3 billion | $1.8 billion |
| Utah | $1.2 billion | $182 million | $153 million |
| Virginia | $2.2 billion | $370 million | $279 million |
| Washington | $3.4 billion | $894 million | $401 million |
| Wisconsin | $1.1 billion | $167 million | $135 million |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Note: Limited to states with 5,000 or more asylum applicant workers. See methodology for more information.
Economic Contributions for Top Metro Areas
| Metro Area | Total Annual Income Contributions to Economy | Total Annual Federal and Payroll Taxes Paid | Total Annual State and Local Taxes Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | $688 million | $127 million | $94 million |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $4.1 billion | $789 million | $515 million |
| Austin-Round Rock, TX | $1.9 billion | $371 million | $222 million |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $775 million | $167 million | $103 million |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $1.4 billion | $277 million | $172 million |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | $534 million | $77 million | $75 million |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | $549 million | $69 million | $66 million |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | $1.6 billion | $235 million | $198 million |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $3.0 billion | $571 million | $444 million |
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | $523 million | $100 million | $68 million |
| Columbus, OH | $348 million | $55 million | $46 million |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $4.5 billion | $801 million | $557 million |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $1.5 billion | $223 million | $173 million |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $1.4 billion | $296 million | $160 million |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $5.6 billion | $842 million | $713 million |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | $657 million | $115 million | $86 million |
| Jacksonville, FL | $731 million | $111 million | $87 million |
| Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | $610 million | $105 million | $78 million |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | $920 million | $110 million | $109 million |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $3.9 billion | $725 million | $548 million |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR | $517 million | $105 million | $63 million |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $11.6 billion | $1.7 billion | $1.4 billion |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $644 million | $116 million | $81 million |
| Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN | $771 million | $127 million | $97 million |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $10.0 billion | $1.9 billion | $1.5 billion |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $4.8 billion | $718 million | $587 million |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE | $1.5 billion | $274 million | $195 million |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | $1.2 billion | $211 million | $148 million |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $557 million | $90 million | $76 million |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | $592 million | $101 million | $79 million |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $594 million | $93 million | $82 million |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, CA | $675 million | $128 million | $92 million |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $555 million | $80 million | $69 million |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | $1.1 billion | $152 million | $135 million |
| San Diego-Carlsbad, CA | $693 million | $159 million | $101 million |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $2.2 billion | $536 million | $330 million |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $2.5 billion | $683 million | $387 million |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $3.1 billion | $848 million | $354 million |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $1.5 billion | $204 million | $190 million |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD | $2.8 billion | $471 million | $361 million |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Note: Limited to metros with 5,000 or more asylum applicant workers. See methodology for more information.
Estimates were prepared by Dr. Phillip Connor, Research Fellow at Princeton University's Center for Migration and Development. Methodology for estimating the size and characteristics of U.S. immigration status groups is based on Dr. Connor's detailed methodology for the immigration statuses of all noncitizen respondents in the 2024 American Community Survey (ACS). A more detailed methodology can be found at phillip-connor.com. During his career, Dr. Connor has worked for the Pew Research Center, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and FWD.us. Dr. Connor's methodology follows a similar process taken by leading research organizations (such as the Pew Research Center, the Center for Migration Studies, and the Migration Policy Institute) that also assign immigration status in the ACS. Dr. Connor's immigration status methodology first follows a series of logical edits, assigning selected noncitizens with likely lawful immigration statuses, including lawful permanent residency and nonimmigrant (temporary) visa holders. The remainder is considered to be the broader undocumented population, including those with temporary protections like asylum applicants. Dr. Connor's methodology has been peer-reviewed and can be found in the International Migration Review.
The number of noncitizens in the 2024 ACS with a pending asylum claim, including affirmative (based on U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services—USCIS—data) cases and defensive (based on Executive Office for Immigration Review—EOIR—data) applicants, were selected from both undocumented and nonimmigrant (temporary) immigrant populations by nationality.5 This nationality breakdown is based on a combination of pending defensive asylum application figures from Transactional Recording Clearing House (TRAC) as well as affirmative asylum applications for top nationalities from USCIS data. Top nationalities were further distributed by EOIR courts and USCIS administrative regions for processing, based on the same TRAC and USCIS data. The total number of asylum applicants is based on the combined number of affirmative and defensive asylum applicants with a pending decision as of September 30, 2025, leaning on a reweighting of likely asylum applicants to reflect the change in the number of asylum applicants from 2024 to 2025.6 Eligible asylum applicants include those who entered the U.S. in 2018 or later, reflecting the average 6 year or longer current backlog for asylum applicants. When necessary, a random selection of immigrants in the 2024 ACS for eligible immigrants from these countries, with an entry date into the U.S. of 2018 or later, were assigned asylum applicant status. The same asylum applicant status was extended to other family members in the household with the same entry year and nationality.
Asylum applicant workers represent those who were employed in 2024, with reweighting of the population for estimates to reflect the total number of asylum applicants as of the end of fiscal year 2025. Since it can take several months to process a work permit, the worker estimates in this report are conservative as it is likely a greater share of asylum applicants were working in 2026 than in 2024. Also as a conservative approach, spending power estimates reflect 2024, not 2026, income.
Economic contributions of undocumented immigrants are the total spending power of personal income available from ACS data after the payment of federal, payroll, state, and local taxes. In the small number of instances, negative personal income after the payment of taxes was considered zero income while the median level of income for the national U.S. population was used for ACS respondents who did not provide personal income.
Federal tax estimates are based on federal and payroll tax estimates for family income by household type (with or without children, senior adult) and household size by percentile income groups from the Congressional Budget Office's 2021 Distribution of Household Income report.
State and local tax estimates do not take into account differences in local taxation rates, but are based on estimated state averages of total state and local taxation by income percentiles of family income from the Institute of Taxation and Economic Policy's 2024 report, Who Pays? A Distribution Analysis of the Tax Systems in All 50 States.
Appendix Table 1 – Asylum Applicant Workforce Industry Breakdown for Top States
Appendix Table 2 – Population Estimates for Industries of Asylum Applicant Workers for Top States
Appendix Table 3 – Asylum Applicant Workforce Industry Breakdown for Top Metro Areas
Appendix Table 4 – Population Estimates for Industries of Asylum Applicant Workers for Top Metro Areas
Appendix Table 5 – Asylum Applicant Workforce and Economic Contributions for Regions
Footnotes
1 The Department of Homeland Security estimates 3.6 million nonimmigrant visa holders (for example, H-1B, H-2A, H-2B, J, F-1 students) lived in the U.S. in 2024. However, hundreds of thousands are non-working spouses or children of principal visa holders; also, hundreds of thousands are international students, most of whom are not working. In fact, based on data analysis of the 2024 ACS using Dr. Connor's immigration status assignments (see methodology for more information), there were 2.2 million nonimmigrant visa holders in the U.S. workforce, smaller than the total estimated 2.3 million asylum applicant workers. Similarly, using the same data and immigration status assignments, there were an estimated 1.6 million unique individuals with temporary protections (for example, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival recipients, paroled individuals, Temporary Protected Status holders, U-T visa applicants, Special Immigrant Juvenile applicants) in the labor force, also less than the estimated 2.3 million asylum applicant workers.
2 U.S. Citizenship & Immigr. Servs., PM-602-0192, Hold and Review of all Pending Asylum Applications and all USCIS Benefit Applications Filed by Aliens from High-Risk Countries (Dec. 2, 2025).
3 See, e.g., U.S. Citizenship and Immigr. Servs., Policy Alert PA-2025-27: Updating Certain Employment Authorization Document Validity Periods, at 2 (Dec. 4, 2025); Removal of the Automatic Extension of Employment Authorization Documents, 90 Fed. Reg. 48,799 (Oct. 30, 2025); 8 U.S.C. § 1802(e) (imposing a $100 fee to apply for asylum); id. § 1808(a) (imposing an annual $102 fee for every year which an asylum application remains pending); id. § 1803(a) (imposing a $550 fee to apply for an initial work permit as an asylum applicant); id. § 1810(a) (imposing an additional $275 fee for asylum applicants to renew their work permit).
4 See Employment Authorization Reform for Asylum Applicants, 91 Fed. Reg. 8,616, 8,617–19 (Feb. 23, 2026).
5 Undocumented individuals were first selected as asylum applicants. When population targets by nationality and time in the U.S. based on the administrative data exceeded the number of available undocumented individuals in the ACS data, nonimmigrants or lawful temporary immigrants (except for diplomats) were selected. A relatively small share (15%) of asylum applicants are estimated to be nonimmigrant visa holders.
6 As affirmative asylum cases at USCIS can include families rather than only individuals, a multiplier of 1.34 extra derivative individuals for each principal was added to obtain the overall total of affirmative asylum individuals. This multiplier is based on research from TRAC that estimated the total pending asylum caseload across EOIR and USCIS.