Illegal immigration and its impact on the economy Essay

Illegal immigration and its impact on the economy - Essay Example It has become a matter of debate and study as it relates considerably to the nation’s politics as well as economy. At the centre of this debate is the question of whether illegal immigrants are good or bad to the economy of the United States (Dudley 18). Various studies have shown that a great number of the United States’ citizens hold the opinion that illegal immigrants are bad for the nation’s economy. However, there are those who believe that these illegal immigrants are good for the economy. Several surveys show that there is a consensus among many economists that both legal as well as illegal immigration is good for the economy seeing that it provides cheap labor; it gives net boost to the economy; it reduces the cost of goods and services; in addition to widening the market for goods and services (Kenney 23). This paper will discuss illegal immigration and its impact on the economy. There has been divided public opinion regarding the impact of illegal immig rants on the United States economy. There are those who believe that illegal immigrants are good for the economy and there are those who believe that they are bad for the economy. ... refore be deduced that the debate on the impact of illegal immigrants revolves around the way in which they expand the national economy and how they, on the other hand, cost the government and increase public expenditures (Dudley 20). In general, illegal immigrants are defined as all individuals who are foreign-born and are non-American citizens and who are not the legal residents of the nation. Illegal immigrants are those individuals who are either admitted temporarily into the country and stay beyond the required duration or those who enter without inspection (West 427). As earlier mentioned, illegal immigration has been a matter of debate and study for a long time across the world and especially in the United States, which records the highest number of illegal immigrants. This subject has attracted a lot of attention because of the great impacts it has on the economy, politics, as well as the social aspects of any given society (Dudley 25). Illegal immigration has had considerabl e impacts on the economy of the United States. Throughout the history of the United States, illegal workers have played a very crucial role in the economy. While economists agree that there are many economic benefits associated with illegal immigration, they also agree that illegal immigration has many burdens to the economy (Nadadur 1037). This has caused division among policy makers on whether illegal immigration laws should be enforced and illegal immigrants punished or whether illegal immigrants should be given amnesty. Numerous studies on the impact of illegal immigration on the economy have found out that there are evident benefits of illegal immigration on the economy. One of the reasons attributed to this proposition is that illegal immigration supplies labor to industries at a