Most immigrants come to the United States from Asia and Latin America. From 1900 to 1990, the proportion of immigrants from Asia and Latin America increased from less then 1.5 percent to 25 percent and 43 percent, respectively. Most immigrants come into the United States illegally. Of the 20 million immigrants tallied in the 1990 census, only 15 percent were in the U.S. illegally. Although these figures do not account for some homeless immigrants and undocumented migrant workers, who return to their native countries when their seasonal work is over, the proportion of illegal immigrants to legal immigrants is still quite small.
Recent immigrants tend to speak a language other than English in the home.
About 80 percent of newly arrived immigrants do not speak English when they are with their families. However, recent immigrants from Spanish-speaking countries become proficient in English at a faster rate than those from other countries where English is not the dominant language. Most undocumented immigrants enter the country across its southern border. Most undocumented immigrants in the U.S. arrive legally on commercial carriers and then overstay their visas, or they come across the Canadian border. Despite this fact, the U.S. spends a disproportionate amount of money and resources enforcing the Mexican border.