California immigration drops nearly 70%. It’s the most in historic U.S. decline
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- Census Bureau reports net international migration fell 53% nationwide in 2024–25.
- California’s international migration plunged nearly 70%, falling from 361k to 109k.
- Experts link decline to Trump administration policies and tightened legal pathways.
California has borne the brunt of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, leading the nation with a sharp decline in international migration, according to new U.S. Census Bureau data.
The numbers, released Tuesday, reveal a significant drop in international migration across the country. Overall, the nation increased by only 1.8 million which is the lowest growth rate since 2021 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest figures estimate the country’s population at 342 million.
In a news release, the Census Bureau largely attributed the slower growth to a “historic decline in net international migration.” The estimates track population changes from July 1, 2024, to July 1, 2025, capturing a little more than five months of Trump’s second term and the last six months of President Joe Biden, who embraced tougher immigration measures at the end of his tenure.
During that one-year period, net immigration added about 1.3 million people — a 53% decrease compared to the previous year. All but three states experienced a net negative change.
The decrease particularly hurt states that have long been home to many immigrants, including California. The state’s migration numbers dropped nearly 70% compared to the previous year.
Only five states, West Virginia, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico and Idaho, experienced a larger percentage decline.
But none matched California’s sheer numerical drop — going from roughly 361,000 to 109,000. Only Texas and Florida saw declines exceeding 150,000.
“In some ways, I guess it makes some sense, since California is the home to the most immigrants, and if it’s going to drop, it’s going to hit California the hardest,” said UC Davis Law Professor Kevin Johnson.
The state, particularly Southern California, has become a focal point for Trump’s mass deportation agenda. Thousands of immigrants were arrested or deported in 2025.
A 5-year decline in California’s total population
California’s population as a whole declined by about 200,000 over the last five years, according to the Census Bureau. Most of that change reflects more residents dying or leaving the state than those arriving or being born. Last year alone, 229,000 people left California — making it one of only five states to experience a population decline.
Still, the state remains the most populous in the country with about 39,359,000 residents as of July 1.
Immigration nationwide is expected to plunge even further in the coming year.
If current trends continue, the Census Bureau projects net international migration to be approximately 321,000 by July 2026. That would mean another drop of 70% from the previous year.
Deportations of undocumented immigrants likely account for only a small share of the total decrease, Johnson said. The New York Times reported this month that the federal government had deported 540,000 people under Trump.
Johnson said that the data reinforce that Trump’s policies have sought to broadly deter legal immigration and contributed to a perception that America is “unfriendly” to immigrants. Since returning to office, Trump has imposed new immigration bans on certain countries, revoked some humanitarian parole programs and tightened visa restrictions. Johnson said these policies could reshape immigration patterns for generations, as previous presidential administrations have done.
“This shows that these policies have national impacts of significant proportions, perhaps bigger than what anybody expected,” Johnson said.
This story was originally published January 28, 2026 at 3:01 PM.
