At Mendoza Law, we conducted a detailed study examining the immigration numbers behind the American Dream. Our research focuses on the distribution, economic participation, family stability, and long-term integration of immigrants across the United States.
We provide a data-driven perspective on how lawful permanent residents and other foreign-born populations contribute to national growth. In this study, we analyze data from multiple sources to offer a clear picture of immigration trends, homeownership, economic integration, and the broader pursuit of the American Dream.
Our study, Immigration Trends Shaping the American Dream, presents a detailed look at who is immigrating, where they are settling, and how they are contributing to the country’s social and economic fabric.
Immigration Trends and Distribution in the United States
According to our findings in a recent study of statistics by the Pew Research Center, as of January 2025, there were 53.3 million immigrants living in the United States, the largest number ever recorded. By June 2025, that number had slightly declined to 51.9 million, representing approximately 15.4% of the total population.
Our findings in a recent study of statistics by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reveal that immigration continues to shape the demographic and economic landscape in a concentrated yet geographically diverse manner.
Distribution of Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs)
The distribution of LPRs shows a clear concentration in a handful of states. California leads the nation with more than 2.5 million LPRs, followed by New York, Florida, and Texas, each housing over one million residents. Together, these four states reflect the role of large, economically diverse states as primary destinations for long-term immigrants.
Across the top 10 states for LPR populations, more than 80% are eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship, with the average time in permanent resident status ranging from nine to ten years. The majority of lawful permanent residents are not recent arrivals but individuals and families who have lived, worked, and contributed to their communities for nearly a decade.
States such as New Jersey, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Washington highlight how regional economic hubs attract and retain immigrant populations outside traditional gateway states. Meanwhile, southern states like Georgia and Florida illustrate the broader expansion of immigrant settlement beyond historical entry points.
Immigration Application Activity and Backlogs
To understand the operational realities of U.S. immigration, we analyzed USCIS application data for October 2025. During that month, nearly 600,000 new applications were processed, with over 444,000 approvals across all immigration categories.
Still, 6.48 million applications remain pending, highlighting the persistent challenges the agency faces in balancing demand with processing capacity.
These figures underscore a systemic capacity challenge rather than a temporary fluctuation. USCIS backlogs affect family reunification, workforce participation, and the ability of immigrants to fully engage in U.S. society, creating a disconnect between their lived contributions and formal legal recognition.
Family-Based Petitions
Family-based petitions represent the largest source of system congestion, with more than 3.1 million pending cases. Employment-based immigration, while smaller in volume, also demonstrates a backlog of approximately 200,000 cases.
Humanitarian Cases
Humanitarian pathways (including refugees and asylum seekers) have more than 800,000 pending applications, reflecting delays that affect vulnerable populations.
Work Authorization Filings
Work authorization filings account for over 1.6 million pending cases, even as monthly approvals closely match new filings.
Naturalization Applications
Naturalization applications further illustrate these systemic challenges. Despite tens of thousands of approvals each month, over 640,000 cases remain pending. Most applicants reach citizenship eligibility after five years as lawful permanent residents, or three years through marriage to a U.S. citizen or military service.
In 2024, newly naturalized citizens had spent a median of 7.5 years as LPRs, highlighting that even long-established immigrants face delays at the final stage of the legal process.
Immigrants and the American Dream
The American Dream has historically been defined by upward mobility, homeownership, family stability, and economic opportunity. National surveys show that 83% of Americans associate the Dream with personal freedom, while 80% cite family life as a critical component of success. Our research demonstrates that immigrants are actively living these principles in measurable ways.
Homeownership
Our findings from a recent statistical study by HomeAbroad found that among foreign-born households, 51% own their homes, reflecting long-term stability and financial planning. Between April 2024 and March 2025, foreign buyers concentrated their U.S. home purchases in a few states: Florida led with 21%, California 15%, Texas 10%, New York 7%, and Arizona 5%.
Additional states such as Hawaii, North Carolina, Michigan, New Jersey, and Illinois each accounted for roughly 3% of foreign buyer activity. This geographic distribution indicates that immigrants are investing in permanent community ties, not merely settling in traditional gateway cities.
Economic Participation
Based on our findings on the statistics reported by FED Small Business, immigrants comprise 19% of the U.S. workforce, a figure that underscores their integral role in the economy.
According to our study of the data reported by the American Immigration Council, this contribution extends into entrepreneurship: in 2025, 46.2% of Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants or their children.
These companies collectively generate trillions in revenue and employ millions of Americans, demonstrating that immigrant entrepreneurship is a driver of both local and national economic growth.
Challenges for Immigrant Entrepreneurs
Despite significant contributions, immigrant business owners face structural barriers. The Small Business Administration’s 2025 policy changes require that 100% of a business’s owners and key management be U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents. This excludes visa holders, DACA recipients, and asylees, effectively reducing small business lending for foreign entrepreneurs by 46%.
This “SBA Lockout” illustrates the tension between immigrants’ active economic participation and the regulatory hurdles they encounter. Immigrant founders continue to drive business formation and job creation despite these barriers, underscoring resilience and long-term commitment to the American economy.
Family Formation and Stability
Family life is another critical pillar of immigrant integration. Approximately 75% of children in immigrant households live with married parents, a rate significantly higher than the 61% observed among U.S.-born families.
Combined with a 51% homeownership rate, this family stability serves as a platform for generational upward mobility. Children in these households benefit from stable family structures, educational opportunities, and financial resources that support long-term achievement and community engagement.
The Immigrant American Dream Index
To quantify these trends, at Mendoza Law, we developed the Immigrant American Dream Index, which measures stability, economic participation, family life, and pathways to citizenship.
The Index demonstrates a clear pattern: immigrants are successfully integrating and achieving the foundational milestones of the American Dream, even as administrative delays impede formal legal recognition.
The Immigrant American Dream Index consists of six core pillars representing key elements of long-term stability and opportunity in the United States. Each pillar was equally weighted, contributing 16.7% of the total index score, to reflect the multidimensional nature of the American Dream.
All indicators were normalized to a 0–100 scale, and the final index score was calculated as the average of the six weighted pillar scores. Higher scores indicate stronger alignment with American Dream outcomes.
Immigration, Integration, and the Reality of the American Dream
Our study reveals that lawful immigration in the U.S. is characterized by stability, long–term settlement, and deep economic and social integration. While the immigrant population reached a historic high of 53.3 million in early 2025, it slightly declined to 51.9 million by midyear. Our Washington DC immigration lawyers offer compassionate legal support.
USCIS backlogs indicate systemic capacity challenges, yet immigrants continue to achieve economic, familial, and social milestones. Immigrant workforce participation, homeownership, entrepreneurship, and family formation illustrate a lived reality of the American Dream, even before formal citizenship is attained.
The Immigrant American Dream Index created by Mendoza Law reinforces this narrative, while revealing persistent institutional inefficiencies that slow formal recognition. Immigrants are not waiting to achieve stability, prosperity, or belonging; they are building it step by step, demonstrating the enduring impact of lawful immigration on the United States.
