Who is an Immigrant

 It is crucial to understand who exactly is the focus of these discussions given that international migration has taken centre stage in political, policy, and public debates across the globe. An immigrant is, to put it simply, a person who was born outside of the country they currently call home. No matter if the individual has acquired citizenship in the country of destination, served in its military, wed a native, or has another status, they will always be considered international migrants.

International migrants make up 258 million of the world's 7.7 billion inhabitants, or about 3.4 percent of the population, a percentage that has marginally increased over the past two decades (see figure).

Over the previous two decades, the proportion of women among overseas migrants has remained essentially stable at just under 50%. However, when examined by area, all save Asia have seen an increase in the proportion of female immigrants.

The term "immigrant" is not always used to describe people who live in a country other than their country of birth; other names that are regularly used include "international migrant," "foreign born," and "migrant." National statistics organizations base their estimates of the number of migrants on the proportion of people who claim to have been born abroad or to have dual citizenship.

Although the term "immigrant" is commonly used to describe anyone born abroad, some are really classified as "nonimmigrants" in the United States. Nonimmigrants only stay for a short period of time, whether it be a few days on a business trip, a few months as a seasonal worker, or a few years as a student. In contrast to immigrants, who aim to live permanently in a new nation. People with a variety of legal statuses are also included among those who are categorized as immigrants. Although these statuses vary among receiving nations, they are frequently comparable.

Different category

Thus, being an immigrant can involve a variety of experiences, some of which are more privileged legally than others. However, in general, immigrants might be thought of as the "first generation" in their new nation. The second generation consists of native-born children who have at least one immigrant parent. The 1.5 generation is a word that was later introduced to describe the period between the first and second generations. The 1.5 generation members probably moved with their parents while they were kids or teenagers.

Since national governments can have different definitions and data collection methods, it is challenging to estimate the size of the population of each country with a migrant background (i.e., the first and subsequent generations who identify as being of a particular origin; also known as the "diaspora").

The number of migrants in the United States is by far the highest in the world; it is around four times higher than those in Saudi Arabia and Germany, the next two nations with the highest immigrant populations (see figure). In all, more than 60% of global migrants reside in Europe or Asia.

But in terms of global population, the United States is far from having the highest proportion of immigrants. With migrants making up 88 percent of all residents in 2017, the United Arab Emirates is in the lead. With 75% and 65% respectively, Kuwait and Qatar are next in line. In contrast, the United Nations places the proportion of foreign-born people in the American population at close to 15%.

China, Mexico, and the Russian Federation (see figure). However, for some of these nations (such as the Russian Federation and Ukraine), changing boundaries rather than genuine human migration gave rise to sizable migrant populations.

India has the most emigrants, yet even so, they only make up a small portion of the nation's total population. In comparison, almost one in ten of the citizens of Mexico, the second-ranked nation, reside abroad. Syria has the highest percentage of citizens living beyond its boundaries among top migrant-origin nations. This is due to a devastating civil conflict that started in 2011 and resulted in one of the largest and fastest exodus in recent memory.