Indians now third largest US immigration group

For the first time the number of Indian immigrants has surpassed those from China and Hong Kong, a Washington, DC-based think tank has reported

Around 1.6 million foreign-born Indians now reside in the United States, making them the third-largest US immigration group behind Mexicans and Filipinos respectively.

The Migration Policy Institute study uses statistics provided by the US Census Bureau’s 2008 American Community Survey and 2000 Census, and the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Immigration Statistics for 2008 and 2009.

The study also shows that the current global recession has not affected Indian immigration as negatively as it has other groups as the avenue of entry for Indians is often employment- or family-based. Indians are also likely to enter as skilled temp workers or students, and then move to permanent residency.

California has the largest number of Indian immigrants (303,497, or 18.7 percent of the Indian-born population) in 2008, followed by New Jersey (187,732, or 11. 6 per cent) and New York (141,738, or 8.7 per cent).

The American Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people make US visa applications to the US Embassy.