The U.S. Census Bureau is making adjustments to how it accounts for immigrants in its annual population estimates by incorporating a broader range of individuals admitted for humanitarian reasons, which are often temporary.
This update is intended to provide a more accurate representation of population changes this decade, as stated by officials on Monday.
The population estimates, including those related to immigration, are set to be released on Thursday, detailing the shifts in the populations of the United States and all 50 states this year.
However, this new methodology for counting immigrants will only be applied to national figures.

In 2023, the share of U.S. residents born outside the country hit its highest level in over 100 years, and this number may potentially increase under the revised counting approach.
Census Bureau representatives refrained from disclosing how much larger the immigrant figures might be in Thursday’s release due to this adjustment.
The challenge of accurately capturing the number of new immigrants is seen as one of the most complex aspects of the annual U.S. population estimates.
The timing of this announcement coincides with President-elect Donald Trump’s impending return to the White House, who has committed to significant deportation efforts against undocumented individuals in the U.S.

“We believe this adjustment represents a valuable strategy to ensure our estimates are more contemporary and better aligned with observed trends,” commented Eric Jensen, a senior research scientist at the Census Bureau.
Historically, the bureau’s annual migration calculations have shown lower figures compared to those from other federal entities, like the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
For instance, while the Census Bureau estimated 1.1 million new immigrants in 2023, the CBO’s figure reached as high as 3.3 million.

The individuals now included in international migration estimates consist of those who have entered the U.S. through humanitarian parole—a provision that has been utilized by both Republican and Democratic administrations for nearly 70 years to aid those who cannot follow standard immigration procedures due to urgent circumstances or poor relations with the U.S.
The Migration Policy Institute indicated last week that over 5.8 million individuals were admitted under various humanitarian policies from 2021 through 2024.

Trump has expressed intentions to eliminate humanitarian parole, during his campaign labeling the existing system an “outrageous abuse of parole.”
The annual population estimates compiled by the Census Bureau rely on data from births, deaths, immigration to the United States, and intra-national migration.
These estimates are vital as they provide official counts for the population across the U.S. and its subdivisions every year between comprehensive censuses.
This data also plays a crucial role in the distribution of trillions of dollars in federal funding.