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Maine Children's Alliance

Immigrant population-- number of people of any age who are foreign born in Maine

Change Indicator

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Why This Indicator Matters

Maine has the oldest median age in the United States, so drawing in new residents from other states and other countries is important for the economy. In light of the national and state discussions about immigration, it is helpful to know how many immigrants there are in Maine's 16 counties.

What the data shows
Maine has a small but growing immigrant population. Cumberland County has 38% of the state's foreign born population, while York has 14% and Penobscot has 8%. There are 6 counties where there are less than 1,000 people who are immigrants. Nationally, Maine is 44rd in the nation based on the percentage of their population that is foreign born, with 3.6% overall.
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Definitions: What this measures
The numerator is the number of people of any age who are legally in the United States and are foreign born. It is based on 5 year estimates of county level populations for 2012-2016. The denominator is the 5 year estimates of total population per the US Census for 2012-2016.  In the census, the term "foreign born" refers to people residing in the United States at the time of the population survey who were not U.S. citizens at birth. The foreign-born population includes naturalized U.S. citizens, lawful permanent immigrants (or green-card holders), refugees and asylees, certain legal non-immigrants (including those on student, work, or some other temporary visas), and persons residing in the country without authorization.


Data Source: American Factfinder 5 year estimates for the numerator ( number of foreign born) and the denominator (total population), Table B05002

Footnotes: Updated November 2019.