Counting the Essential Economic Contributions of Temporary Protected Status Holders
Counting the Essential Economic Contributions of Temporary Protected Status Holders
Workers with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) have been contributing to the U.S. economy for years. In 2025, workers with TPS (“TPS workers”) numbered as many as 750,000, contributing up to $29 billion to the U.S. economy each year in addition to nearly $8 billion in combined taxes. At the time, their nationwide labor footprint was similar in total size as the entire state of New Hampshire or the entire Salt Lake City metro area. Workers with TPS have become a critically-needed, essential workforce, stabilizing labor markets across several industries.
TPS affords immigrants with deportation protections and access to work permits. TPS is an authorization to live and work in the U.S. afforded to some immigrants after their country is designated by the Department of Homeland Security. TPS can be designated for 6 month, 12 month, or 18 month renewable periods.
In early 2025, the point in time when the number of TPS holders likely peaked, 17 countries had TPS designations: Venezuela (336,000 workers), Haiti (152,000), El Salvador (146,000), Ukraine (45,000), Honduras (42,000), Nepal (5,000), Afghanistan (5,000), Ethiopia (3,000), Burma (Myanmar) (3,000), Nicaragua (2,000), Cameroon (2,000), Sudan (2,000), Syria (1,000), Yemen (1,000), South Sudan (<1,000), Somalia (<1,000), and Lebanon (<1,000). Many of these country designations began years earlier. In fact, workers with TPS as of 2025 had worked, on average, 9 years in the U.S. workforce, with nearly a third (30%) having worked 15 years or longer.
The extent of TPS workers’ economic contributions is significant and for years has been a reliable workforce for thousands of employers across the country. At their peak in early 2025, TPS workers were contributing to the economy in every U.S. state and many metro areas. Critical to employers for years, most TPS workers have had relative certainty over their continued access to work permits while conditions in their home country remained unsafe for return. Although TPS workers relied on extensions or redesignations of their TPS status, many employers had become accustomed to the rhythm and for years expected their employees with TPS to be available for work. But, in 2025, this relative certainty began to erode as TPS designations were terminated country by country. Within a little more than a year, nearly all TPS designations had been terminated, with only four countries – El Salvador, Ukraine, Sudan and Lebanon – still having active designations as of September 2026. Some TPS workers have been able to stay in the authorized workforce because they are eligible for another kind of work permit, but many have been unable to stay on the job as terminations have gone into effect.
Without TPS workers’ economic contributions, goods and services that many U.S. citizens rely on each and every day are being severely impacted.
To that end, this report offers a detailed analysis of the workforce characteristics and economic contributions of TPS workers, demonstrating their deep integration in the U.S. economy in 2025. With many TPS workers now shut out of the authorized workforce due to the termination of their status, the population and economic estimates clearly demonstrate that policy and law makers must urgently do more to regain these individuals to the U.S. workforce. Many sectors are already experiencing worker shortages and profound economic losses without TPS workers. Losses abound without TPS workers contributing to the economy, including losses to the American economy, losses to American families, and ultimately, losses to America’s future.
No single, large-scale survey of TPS workers 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 TPS workers rely on conventional demographic and economic estimation methods used for 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 TPS workers, years in country and nationality variables, according to breakdowns available from administrative data, were used. With these immigration status assignments for TPS workers, economic variables in the ACS such as labor force participation, employment, industry of employment, income, state and metro area of residence, among other demographic and economic measures, can be analyzed, allowing us to estimate the economic impact of workers with TPS.
Populations in the 2024 ACS were reweighted to reflect the total number of TPS holders as of March 31, 2025. Early 2025 is the peak TPS population before TPS terminations and losses of work authorization went into effect.
Population, demographic, and workforce estimates are based on the number of employed TPS holders noted as “TPS workers”. Note that other publications reporting on the TPS population may refer to the entire TPS holder population or the TPS population in the labor force (which includes a slightly larger population, including children and/or individuals temporarily unavailable to work).
Since some TPS workers still have access to work permits, most references to the TPS workforce are in the present tense, even though most no longer have access to work permits and the data reflects a snapshot of the past (March 2025).
For more information on how the estimates were calculated, see the report’s methodology.
Numbering nearly 750,000, the impact of TPS workers is significant. The overwhelming majority of adults with TPS were working as of early 2025: some 73% were in the U.S. labor force, much higher than the general U.S. public at 66%. More specifically, some 78% of TPS holders in their prime working years (ages 25-54) were in the labor force, similar to the 85% level for the total U.S. population.
| Worker Characteristic | TPS Workforce | Total U.S. Workforce |
|---|---|---|
| Labor Force Participation Rate (all adults) | 73% | 66% |
| Labor Force Participation Rate (ages 25-54) | 78% | 85% |
| Median Age | 40 | 41 |
| Married | 49% | 51% |
| Average Number of Children at Home (of parents with children at home) | 1.8 | 1.9 |
| Some College Education (ages 25 and older) | 44% | 60% |
| Completion of an Undergraduate Degree or Higher (ages 25 and older) | 23% | 42% |
Source: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data for employed workers. See methodology for more information.
The TPS workforce is demographically similar to the U.S. workforce. Their median age is 40, about the same median age as the total U.S. workforce, whose median age is 41. Nearly half (49%) of the TPS workforce is married, similar to the overall U.S. workforce (51%). Similarly, the family size of TPS working parents with at least one child at home (average of 1.8 children) is close to the same as the total U.S. workforce (average of 1.9 children).
The post-secondary educational attainment of the TPS workforce is generally lower than the total U.S. workforce, but not considerably so. Among those who are 25 years or older, nearly half (44%) of the TPS workforce are estimated to have some college education, while about a quarter (23%) 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 pervasive employment of TPS workers in industries that have experienced persistent labor shortages for several years. For example, industries with 100,000 or more employed TPS workers include: construction (an estimated 123,000 workers), transportation, warehousing, and utilities (104,000), wholesale and retail trade (101,000), and leisure and hospitality (100,000).
| Industry | TPS Workers | Remaining Job Openings |
|---|---|---|
| Construction | 123,000 | 231,000 |
| Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities | 104,000 | 1,131,000 |
| Wholesale and Retail Trade | 101,000 | 813,000 |
| Leisure and Hospitality | 100,000 | 1,041,000 |
| Professional and Business Services | 92,000 | 977,000 |
| Manufacturing | 77,000 | 495,000 |
| Health Services | 43,000 | 1,410,000 |
| Agriculture | 17,000 | n/a |
| Education Services | 16,000 | 377,000 |
| Other Services | 74,000 | 755,000 |
| Total | 747,000 | 7,230,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data (TPS 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 employed TPS workers include: professional and business services (92,000), manufacturing (77,000), health services (43,000), agriculture (17,000), and education services (16,000). Many of these industries have experienced persistent worker shortages. For example, in most industries where TPS workers are employed, there are hundreds of thousands more open jobs than those held by TPS workers. Consequently, arguments that TPS workers are taking jobs from U.S. citizens are unfounded. Plenty of open jobs exist for both the TPS workforce and U.S. citizens wanting to work in the same industries. And, with access to work permits, TPS workers can be lawfully employed in the country, simultaneously lifting up the wages of U.S. citizen workers.
| Industry | TPS Workers |
|---|---|
| Construction | 123,000 |
| Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities | 104,000 |
| Couriers and messengers | 39,000 |
| Truck transportation | 18,000 |
| Taxi and limousine services | 17,000 |
| Warehousing and storage | 15,000 |
| Other transportation, warehousing, and utilities | 15,000 |
| Wholesale and Retail Trade | 101,000 |
| Warehouse clubs, supercenters, general retailers | 32,000 |
| Supermarkets and grocery stores | 11,000 |
| Grocery wholesalers | 7,000 |
| Automobile dealers | 5,000 |
| Other wholesale and retail trade | 46,000 |
| Leisure and Hospitality | 100,000 |
| Food services and drinking places (non-alcohol) | 67,000 |
| Traveler accommodation | 23,000 |
| Amusement, gambling, and recreation | 7,000 |
| Other leisure and hospitality | 3,000 |
| Professional and Business Services | 92,000 |
| Services to buildings and dwellings (non-landscaping) | 29,000 |
| Landscaping services | 21,000 |
| Investigation and security services | 8,000 |
| Waste management and remediation services | 7,000 |
| Employment services | 6,000 |
| Other professional and business services | 21,000 |
| Manufacturing | 77,000 |
| Meatpacking and processing | 8,000 |
| Motor vehicle and motor vehicle equipment | 8,000 |
| Other manufacturing | 61,000 |
| Health Services | 43,000 |
| Nursing and residential care facilities | 13,000 |
| General medical and surgical hospitals | 8,000 |
| Home health care services | 7,000 |
| Outpatient care centers | 4,000 |
| Child care services | 4,000 |
| Other health services | 7,000 |
| Agriculture | 17,000 |
| Crop production | 15,000 |
| Other agriculture | 2,000 |
| Education Services | 16,000 |
| Elementary and secondary schools | 11,000 |
| Other Education Services | 5,000 |
| Other Services | 74,000 |
| Automotive repair and maintenance | 15,000 |
| Personal services | 7,000 |
| Real estate services | 7,000 |
| Barber shops | 5,000 |
| Beauty salon | 5,000 |
| Other other services | 35,000 |
| Total | 747,000 |
Source: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Note: Education services include both private and state/local jobs. See methodology for more information.
Within industries, TPS workers are employed in a handful of critical sectors. For example, 67,000 TPS workers are employed in food services, 39,000 work as couriers and messengers, 32,000 work in warehouse clubs, supercenters, and other general retailers, 29,000 provide services to buildings and other dwellings, 21,000 work in landscaping, 15,000 are in automotive repair and maintenance, 15,000 are in crop production, and 13,000 work in nursing and residential care facilities. Most Americans in recent years have encountered a TPS worker almost everyday, building or renovating homes in their neighborhood, driving public transit, staffing their kids’ school, stocking essentials at their community’s grocery store, or delivering care to their aging parents in a nursing home. Without work permits for TPS workers, these essential services are being lost and immediately felt by Americans across the country.
In early 2025, immigrants from 17 different countries had a designated TPS status. Some of the largest origin countries of TPS workers currently or recently in the workforce, and their average years of employment with TPS, include: Venezuela - 336,000 workers and 3 years on average in the U.S. workforce; Haiti - 152,000 and 7 years, El Salvador - 146,000 and 23 years and Ukraine - 45,000 and 2 years.
Designations for Venezuela and Haiti have been terminated. Designations for El Salvador and Ukraine will expire in the fall of 2026 unless the Department of Homeland Security decides to extend them. These nationals have and are contributing in industries critical to the U.S. economy, including construction (57,000 workers) and leisure and hospitality (54,000) as top industries among Venezuelan TPS workers; wholesale and retail trade (28,000), transportation, warehousing, and utilities (25,000), and health services (21,000) as top industries among Haitian TPS workers; construction (38,000) and professional and business services (22,000) as top industries among Salvadoran TPS workers; and transportation, warehousing, and utilities (10,000) and construction (7,000) as top industries among Ukrainian TPS workers.
| Industry | Venezuela | Haiti | El Salvador | Ukraine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Construction | 57,000 | 6,000 | 38,000 | 7,000 |
| Leisure and Hospitality | 54,000 | 20,000 | 16,000 | 4,000 |
| Professional and Business Services | 41,000 | 18,000 | 22,000 | 4,000 |
| Wholesale and Retail Trade | 46,000 | 28,000 | 17,000 | 5,000 |
| Manufacturing | 34,000 | 12,000 | 18,000 | 4,000 |
| Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities | 53,000 | 25,000 | 9,000 | 10,000 |
| Agriculture | 6,000 | 9,000 | 2,000 | <1,000 |
| Health Services | 8,000 | 21,000 | 6,000 | 2,000 |
| Education Services | 4,000 | 3,000 | 5,000 | 2,000 |
| Other Services | 33,000 | 10,000 | 13,000 | 6,000 |
| Total | 336,000 | 152,000 | 146,000 | 45,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Note: Education services include both private and state/local jobs. See methodology for more information.
With successive terminations of TPS designations by the Trump administration, TPS workers have seen their ability to work in the authorized workforce quickly evaporate, sometimes overnight. At the same time, local employers have suddenly lost employees they have counted on for years, not incrementally, but on a single day.
Some TPS holders may have other pending immigration applications that would enable them to qualify for a work permit, like a pending asylum application. But the U.S. government is also making it more difficult for asylum applicants to obtain and keep a work permit by shortening work permit validity periods, eliminating automatic extensions that prevent lapses while renewal applications are awaiting adjudication, and charging significantly higher fees for applications.1 Also, most recently, the U.S. government has proposed pausing new initial work permit processing for asylum applicants, lengthening wait times, and increasing discretion to deny work permit applications.2
TPS on its own does not lead to permanent residency. A very small number of TPS holders might be eligible, through family relationships or their employers, to adjust their status to permanent residency, but it is a very lengthy process, and results are far from certain. Additionally, workers previously holding TPS are now starting to be deported, or are voluntarily leaving to avoid detention. Lawmakers need to quickly change these trends before this once reliable workforce is largely unavailable.
TPS workers are employed across the U.S. From Florida to Texas, and New York to California, they are measurably contributing in almost every state and metropolitan area. There are at least 3,000 or more TPS workers living in 30 states across the country.
There are, however, some noticeable concentrations of TPS workers in certain states. For example, more than a quarter of TPS workers (216,000) are estimated to be employed in Florida alone. The next largest states are Texas, New York, California, and Georgia, with more than 30,000 TPS workers living in each of those states.
| State | TPS Workers |
|---|---|
| Florida | 216,000 |
| Texas | 111,000 |
| New York | 46,000 |
| California | 46,000 |
| Georgia | 32,000 |
| Maryland | 27,000 |
| North Carolina | 25,000 |
| New Jersey | 25,000 |
| Illinois | 23,000 |
| Virginia | 20,000 |
| Tennessee | 16,000 |
| Massachusetts | 14,000 |
| Ohio | 13,000 |
| Colorado | 12,000 |
| Pennsylvania | 11,000 |
| Indiana | 9,000 |
| Utah | 9,000 |
| South Carolina | 9,000 |
| Washington | 8,000 |
| Michigan | 8,000 |
| Connecticut | 6,000 |
| Arizona | 6,000 |
| Minnesota | 5,000 |
| Missouri | 5,000 |
| Arkansas | 4,000 |
| North Dakota | 4,000 |
| Louisiana | 4,000 |
| Kentucky | 4,000 |
| Kansas | 4,000 |
| Alabama | 3,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Limited to states with 3,000 or more TPS workers. See methodology for more information.
By leading origin countries, TPS workers live in a few select, top states. For example, Venezuelan TPS workers live predominantly in Florida (130,000 workers) and Texas (72,000) while top states of residence for Haitian TPS workers are also Florida (72,000) as well as New York (22,000). Top states for Salvadoran TPS workers include California (30,000), Texas (23,000), and Maryland (20,000). Finally, Ukrainian TPS workers are spread across the country, but Illinois (10,000) stands out as a key state of residence for Ukrainian TPS workers.
| State | Venezuela | Haiti | El Salvador | Ukraine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| Arizona | 4,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| Arkansas | 2,000 | <1,000 | 2,000 | <1,000 |
| California | 3,000 | 2,000 | 30,000 | 4,000 |
| Colorado | 10,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Connecticut | 1,000 | 2,000 | <1,000 | 2,000 |
| Florida | 130,000 | 72,000 | 6,000 | 2,000 |
| Georgia | 22,000 | 4,000 | 4,000 | <1,000 |
| Illinois | 12,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 | 10,000 |
| Indiana | 2,000 | 6,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| Kansas | 2,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Kentucky | 3,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Louisiana | 1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Maryland | 2,000 | 1,000 | 20,000 | <1,000 |
| Massachusetts | <1,000 | 8,000 | 4,000 | 1,000 |
| Michigan | 2,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
| Minnesota | 4,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| Missouri | 1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 |
| New Jersey | 9,000 | 7,000 | 4,000 | <1,000 |
| New York | 3,000 | 22,000 | 14,000 | 3,000 |
| North Carolina | 7,000 | 5,000 | 7,000 | 1,000 |
| North Dakota | 4,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Ohio | 4,000 | 4,000 | <1,000 | 5,000 |
| Pennsylvania | 5,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 3,000 |
| South Carolina | 5,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Tennessee | 9,000 | <1,000 | 2,000 | 1,000 |
| Texas | 72,000 | 2,000 | 23,000 | 1,000 |
| Utah | 7,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| Virginia | 3,000 | 3,000 | 10,000 | 1,000 |
| Washington | 1,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | 5,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Limited to states with 3,000 or more total TPS workers. See methodology for more information.
Similarly, many metro economies are driven by workers currently holding or once holding TPS. From Miami to New York and Orlando to Houston, businesses in metropolitan areas rely on TPS workers to meet their labor and customer needs.
Metros with a considerably large TPS workforce include the greater Miami metro, with an estimated 109,000 workers and a further 67,000 workers in the greater New York City metro area. Also, 63,000 TPS workers are employed in the Orlando metro area while 46,000 work in the greater Houston metro area.
| Metro Area | TPS workers |
|---|---|
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 109,000 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 67,000 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | 63,000 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 46,000 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 39,000 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD | 36,000 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 27,000 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 25,000 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 21,000 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 12,000 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 11,000 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 10,000 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 8,000 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 8,000 |
| Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN | 7,000 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 7,000 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | 7,000 |
| Austin-Round Rock, TX | 6,000 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 6,000 |
| Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 6,000 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | 6,000 |
| Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL | 4,000 |
| Columbus, OH | 4,000 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE | 4,000 |
| Kansas City, MO-KS | 4,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Limited to metro areas with 4,000 or more TPS workers. Metros represent metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) utilizing 2013 geographic boundaries. MSAs frequently encompass multiple counties and may traverse state borders. See methodology for more information.
By leading origin countries, TPS workers primarily live in a few select, top metro areas. For example, Venezuelan TPS workers live predominantly in the Miami metro area (58,000 workers) and Orlando metro (50,000) while many more live in Texas, more specifically the Dallas-Fort Worth (28,000) and Houston (25,000) metro areas. Top metros of residence for Haitian TPS workers are Miami (42,000) and New York City (29,000), while the top metro for Salvadoran TPS workers is the Washington D.C. metro area (27,000). Finally, Ukrainian TPS workers are spread across the country, but the Chicago area (10,000) stands out as a top metro area of residence.
| Metro Area | Venezuela | Haiti | El Salvador | Ukraine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 19,000 | 3,000 | 3,000 | <1,000 |
| Austin-Round Rock, TX | 5,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | <1,000 | 7,000 | 4,000 | 1,000 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 5,000 | <1,000 | 3,000 | 1,000 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 11,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 | 10,000 |
| Columbus, OH | 1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 | 2,000 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 28,000 | <1,000 | 8,000 | <1,000 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 8,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 2,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 25,000 | <1,000 | 13,000 | <1,000 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | 1,000 | 4,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| Kansas City, MO-KS | 1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 5,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 1,000 | 1,000 | 17,000 | 1,000 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 58,000 | 42,000 | 4,000 | 1,000 |
| Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL | 2,000 | 3,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN | 5,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | <1,000 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 11,000 | 29,000 | 18,000 | 2,000 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | 50,000 | 12,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE | 1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 | 3,000 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 6,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | 1,000 | <1,000 | 5,000 | <1,000 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 1,000 | <1,000 | 1,000 | 5,000 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 3,000 | 5,000 | <1,000 | <1,000 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD | 2,000 | 1,000 | 27,000 | 1,000 |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Limited to metro areas with 4,000 or more total TPS workers. Metros represent metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) utilizing 2013 geographic boundaries. MSAs frequently encompass multiple counties and may traverse state borders. See methodology for more information.
At more than $29 billion annually, the estimated total income of TPS holders is significant. The spending power of all TPS holders has been contributing considerably to the U.S. economy, and has been particularly felt in states and metros across the nation where TPS workers number the highest.
As consumers, TPS holders, for years, have been contributing to and fueling local economies, buying food, paying rent, and seeking services. For example, in Florida, where the number of TPS holders is particularly high, TPS holders contribute an estimated $7.8 billion annually to the state’s economy. In Florida, as is the case in other states with a large number of TPS holders, their income is spent in local communities and at local businesses, many of which are owned by U.S. citizens.
TPS holders are significantly growing other state economies, including several billions of dollars being poured into their state economies each year, such as Texas ($4.2 billion), California ($1.9 billion), New York ($1.9 billion), and Maryland ($1.1 billion).
| State | Total Annual Income Contributions to Economy | Total Annual Federal and Payroll Taxes Paid | Total Annual State and Local Taxes Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | $7.8 billion | $1.0 billion | $922 million |
| Texas | $4.2 billion | $588 million | $525 million |
| California | $1.9 billion | $308 million | $265 million |
| New York | $1.9 billion | $309 million | $314 million |
| Maryland | $1.1 billion | $186 million | $148 million |
| New Jersey | $1.0 billion | $164 million | $138 million |
| Illinois | $1.0 billion | $121 million | $151 million |
| Georgia | $956 million | $117 million | $117 million |
| North Carolina | $880 million | $85 million | $101 million |
| Virginia | $849 million | $107 million | $103 million |
| Massachusetts | $771 million | $142 million | $96 million |
| Pennsylvania | $726 million | $125 million | $101 million |
| Ohio | $530 million | $64 million | $68 million |
| Tennessee | $516 million | $62 million | $64 million |
| Colorado | $511 million | $77 million | $62 million |
| Indiana | $479 million | $70 million | $62 million |
| Washington | $417 million | $64 million | $54 million |
| Utah | $376 million | $62 million | $48 million |
| Michigan | $357 million | $57 million | $42 million |
| Connecticut | $287 million | $50 million | $42 million |
| South Carolina | $261 million | $42 million | $31 million |
| North Dakota | $231 million | $28 million | $25 million |
| Arizona | $213 million | $28 million | $27 million |
| Missouri | $176 million | $19 million | $19 million |
| Minnesota | $147 million | $27 million | $16 million |
| Louisiana | $141 million | $21 million | $21 million |
| Arkansas | $126 million | $12 million | $17 million |
| Alabama | $109 million | $17 million | $14 million |
| Kansas | $103 million | $11 million | $14 million |
| Kentucky | $78 million | $4 million | $10 million |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Note: Limited to states with 3,000 or more working TPS holders. See methodology for more information.
And this spending power is after the payment of nearly $8 billion in combined total taxes each year, including $4.1 billion in federal and payroll taxes and $3.7 billion in state and local taxes. Nationally, through the payment of federal and payroll taxes, TPS holders fund nearly the equivalent of a small, federal agency budget. At a state level, the total annual state and local tax contributions from TPS holders in several states is equivalent to the entire budget of a small city within that state.
This economic fuel of TPS holders’ spending power is particularly concentrated in top states of residence for leading origin countries of TPS holders. For example, Venezuelan TPS holders contribute an estimated $4.7 billion annually to Florida’s economy while Haitian TPS holders contribute $2.6 billion also to Florida. Meanwhile, $1.1 billion is annually contributed to California’s economy by Salvadoran TPS holders and $602 million annually to Illinois’ economy by Ukrainian TPS holders.
| Origin Country/State | Total Annual Income Contributions to Economy | Total Annual Federal and Payroll Taxes Paid | Total Annual State and Local Taxes Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venezuela | |||
| U.S. | $12.6 billion | $1.8 billion | $1.6 billion |
| Florida | $4.7 billion | $659 million | $562 million |
| Texas | $2.7 billion | $368 million | $348 million |
| Georgia | $644 million | $80 million | $79 million |
| Colorado | $417 million | $66 million | $50 million |
| New Jersey | $374 million | $70 million | $54 million |
| Haiti | |||
| U.S. | $5.9 billion | $805 million | $755 million |
| Florida | $2.6 billion | $300 million | $306 million |
| New York | $863 million | $140 million | $141 million |
| Massachusetts | $481 million | $88 million | $59 million |
| New Jersey | $264 million | $36 million | $34 million |
| Pennsylvania | $235 million | $54 million | $31 million |
| El Salvador | |||
| U.S. | $5.4 billion | $739 million | $718 million |
| California | $1.1 billion | $172 million | $158 million |
| Texas | $932 million | $134 million | $109 million |
| Maryland | $732 million | $109 million | $100 million |
| New York | $534 million | $83 million | $93 million |
| Virginia | $371 million | $27 million | $44 million |
| Ukraine | |||
| U.S. | $2.6 billion | $361 million | $355 million |
| Illinois | $602 million | $58 million | $88 million |
| Ohio | $271 million | $34 million | $34 million |
| California | $260 million | $44 million | $35 million |
| Washington | $237 million | $28 million | $32 million |
| Pennsylvania | $187 million | $23 million | $27 million |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Note: Limited to top 5 states' income contributions of TPS holders for each origin country. See methodology for more information.
TPS holders, as an entire group, have total, annual, aggregate incomes in some metropolitan areas that amount to several billions of dollars, such as the greater Miami area ($3.8 billion), the greater New York City area ($2.7 billion), the greater Orlando area ($2.1 billion), and the greater Houston area ($2.0 billion). And through sales, property, or other taxes, TPS holders are contributing millions in taxes to local coffers, funding many services for the cities they are living in.
| Metro Area | Total Annual Income Contributions to Economy | Total Annual Federal and Payroll Taxes Paid | Total Annual State and Local Taxes Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $3.8 billion | $529 million | $455 million |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $2.7 billion | $444 million | $425 million |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $2.1 billion | $225 million | $262 million |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $2.0 billion | $288 million | $241 million |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD | $1.5 billion | $254 million | $209 million |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $1.4 billion | $211 million | $179 million |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $998 million | $117 million | $147 million |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $887 million | $131 million | $122 million |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $725 million | $81 million | $88 million |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $675 million | $132 million | $85 million |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $421 million | $70 million | $52 million |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $358 million | $44 million | $49 million |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $338 million | $72 million | $50 million |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | $331 million | $39 million | $39 million |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | $295 million | $49 million | $39 million |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE | $286 million | $44 million | $40 million |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $284 million | $45 million | $34 million |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $274 million | $35 million | $32 million |
| Austin-Round Rock, TX | $257 million | $27 million | $31 million |
| Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | $231 million | $19 million | $27 million |
| Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL | $219 million | $38 million | $24 million |
| Columbus, OH | $218 million | $31 million | $28 million |
| Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN | $218 million | $16 million | $27 million |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | $211 million | $25 million | $28 million |
| Kansas City, MO-KS | $136 million | $15 million | $15 million |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. Metro areas limited to metro areas with 3,000 or more working TPS holders. Metros represent metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) utilizing 2013 geographic boundaries. MSAs frequently encompass multiple counties and may traverse state borders. See methodology for more information.
These significant economic contributions of TPS holders are responsible for growing metro economies, particularly when segmented by leading origin countries. For example, Venezuelan TPS holders alone contribute an estimated $2.1 billion annually to the greater Miami’s economy while Haitian TPS holders contribute $1.5 billion also to Miami. Meanwhile, nearly $1 billion is annually contributed to the Washington, D.C. metro area economy by Salvadoran TPS holders and $599 million annually to Chicago metro’s economy by Ukrainian TPS holders.
| Origin Country/State | Total Annual Income Contributions to Economy | Total Annual Federal and Payroll Taxes Paid | Total Annual State and Local Taxes Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venezuela | |||
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $2.1 billion | $325 million | $243 million |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $1.7 billion | $187 million | $216 million |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $1.0 billion | $147 million | $131 million |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $1.2 billion | $164 million | $149 million |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $503 million | $55 million | $61 million |
| Haiti | |||
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $1.5 billion | $170 million | $171 million |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $1.1 billion | $171 million | $174 million |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $329 million | $37 million | $46 million |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $418 million | $80 million | $53 million |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $125 million | $17 million | $16 million |
| El Salvador | |||
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD | $965 million | $126 million | $131 million |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $668 million | $95 million | $107 million |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $555 million | $71 million | $75 million |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $590 million | $101 million | $67 million |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $239 million | $28 million | $29 million |
| Ukraine | |||
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $599 million | $58 million | $88 million |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $231 million | $26 million | $31 million |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE | $174 million | $23 million | $25 million |
| Columbus, OH | $102 million | $15 million | $13 million |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $175 million | $43 million | $32 million |
Sources: Augmented 2024 American Community Survey data. List of metro areas limited to top 5 metro areas of working TPS holders for each origin country. Metros represent metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) utilizing 2013 geographic boundaries. MSAs frequently encompass multiple counties and may traverse state borders. See methodology for more information.
Appendix Table 1a - TPS Workforce Industry Breakdown for Top States Appendix Table 1b - TPS Workforce Industry Breakdown for Top States by Origin Countries Appendix Table 2a - Population Estimates for Industries of TPS Workers for Top States Appendix Table 2b - Population Estimates for Industries of TPS Workers for Top States by Origin Countries Appendix Table 3a - TPS Workforce Industry Breakdown for Top Metro Areas Appendix Table 3b - TPS Workforce Industry Breakdown by Top Metro Areas by Origin Countries Appendix Table 4a - Population Estimates for Industries of TPS Workers for Top Metro Areas Appendix Table 4b - Population Estimates for Industries of TPS Workers for Top Metro Areas by Origin Countries Appendix Table 5 - TPS Workforce and Their Economic Contributions by U.S. Region
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 TPS holders. 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 TPS was selected by nationality and qualifying years of residence in the U.S. This nationality breakdown is based on administrative records, according to the Congressional Research Service, listing the number of TPS holders as of March 31, 2025. This date was before any terminations of TPS designations had taken effect. As a result, the data in this report represents a peak of TPS holders in the U.S. and in the authorized workforce. (Although some new TPS applications were processed through October 2025 when TPS terminations first started to go into effect, the number of approved applications was only several thousand, which are not included in this analysis.)
TPS workers represent those who were employed in 2024, with reweighting of the population to reflect the total number of TPS holders as of March 31, 2025. Since it can take several months to process a work permit, the worker estimates in this report are conservative as a greater share of TPS holders were likely working in 2025 than in 2024. Also as a conservative approach, spending power estimates reflect 2024, not 2025, income. The estimated number of years working in the U.S. economy assumes that workers in 2024 were employed since they entered the U.S. and through 2025, except for years when they were a minor (less than 18 years old) or years before their country was designated for TPS and a work permit as a TPS worker would have been available.
Economic contributions of TPS holders, regardless if formally employed, 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 the small number of ACS respondents with TPS 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.
Footnotes
1 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) (“Updates the maximum validity period for initial and renewal EADs from 5 years to 18 months for those admitted as refugees, granted asylum, granted withholding of deportation or removal, for those with pending applications for asylum or withholding of removal[.]”); 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 asylum fee currently pegged at $102 while an asylum application remains pending); id. § 1803(a) (imposing a $560 fee to apply for an initial work permit as an asylum seeker); id. § 1810(a) (imposing a $745 fee for asylum seekers to renew their work permit online, and a $795 fee to renew their work permits by mail).↩
2 See Employment Authorization Reform for Asylum Applicants, 91 Fed. Reg. 8,616, 8,617–19 (Feb. 23, 2026).↩