Welfare Consumption by Illegal Immigrants Is Inevitable — as Long as They’re Here
By Jason Richwine on March 6, 2025
“Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Open Borders”, an executive order signed by President Trump on February 19, requires federal agencies to ensure that illegal immigrants do not improperly access welfare benefits. While the order is welcome, it cannot prevent illegal immigrants from participating in the welfare state. No order can. The reason is that illegal immigrants, although not usually eligible themselves, can access welfare through eligible family members such as their U.S.-born children. The best way to reduce illegal immigrant consumption of welfare is not to construct new eligibility rules, but to reduce illegal immigration itself.
A recent analysis from the Center used the 2022 Survey of Income and Program Participation to compare immigrant and native welfare use.1 We expand on that analysis here to show how illegal immigrants who are heads of households receive welfare primarily through other household members.
Figure 1 comes directly from the original analysis. It shows that 59 percent of households headed by an illegal immigrant use at least one welfare program, compared to 52 percent of legal immigrant households and 39 percent of native households. Illegal immigrant households are especially likely to receive food benefits and Medicaid relative to native households.
Figure 1. Households headed by an illegal immigrant have a high rate of welfare use.
Source: 2022 SIPP.
Figure 2 provides the same household statistics as Figure 1, but it adds additional information about household heads specifically. While 59 percent of households headed by an illegal immigrant receive welfare, just 20 percent of illegal immigrant heads personally receive welfare themselves. Other members of their households, who are usually legal residents, make up the difference. The head-household distinction is especially noticeable with Medicaid, as just 1 percent of illegal household heads receive Medicaid — typically in emergency situations — but receipt by other household members pushes the rate all the way up to 39 percent.2
https://cis.org/Richwine/Welfare-Consumption-Illegal-Immigrants-Inevitable-Long-Theyre-Here
