Unauthorized Dominican immigrants in U.S. increased nearly 30% in four years

The population of Dominican immigrants living in the United States without legal immigration status increased by approximately 30% between 2019 and 2023, according to estimates from the Migration Policy Institute (MPI).

In 2019, about 164,000 immigrants born in the Dominican Republic were living in the United States without authorization, according to MPI. By mid-2023, that figure had risen to approximately 213,000, based on the institute’s estimate of 575,000 unauthorized Caribbean immigrants, 37% of whom were Dominican.

The increase represents roughly 49,000 additional people and amounts to growth of nearly 30% over four years, according to MPI reports published in 2024 and 2025.

Dominicans are the largest Caribbean group

The data on unauthorized immigration is part of a broader picture of the Dominican community in the United States.

MPI estimated that approximately 13.7 million immigrants were living in the country without legal immigration status as of mid-2023. Of that total, about 575,000, or 4%, were from Caribbean countries.

Dominicans represented the largest group within that Caribbean population, accounting for 37%, followed by Haitians at 31%, Cubans at 15% and Jamaicans at 10%.