The number of people obtaining visas to move permanently to the United States is set to drop 12 percent in President Donald Trump's first two years in the White House, The Washington Post is reporting.
And the total number of new arrivals to the U.S from Muslim-majority counties on Trump's travel ban list – Yemen, Syria, Libya, Iran and Somalia – has dramatically declined. Those nations are expected to see an 81 percent drop by Sept. 30 when the second fiscal year under Trump ends, according to the newspaper.
The decline in arrivals from those countries could be hit even further as a result of the Supreme Court decision upholding the ban, the Post said.
In the high court's decision, Chief Justice John Roberts noted the travel ban's stated goals of preventing entry to the U.S. of people who cannot be adequately vetted and inducing other countries to improve their security practices provided legitimate justifications.
The White House has said Trump's immigration policies are sparked by concerns for America's security and a desire to save jobs for Americans.
"The history of immigration policy in the United States is one of ebbs and flows," an unnamed White House official told the Post. "Yet in recent years, the U.S. has (had) record immigration without any consideration of this influx's impact on American workers or wages."
While legal immigration from all Muslim-majority nations is on pace to fall by nearly a third, many other countries are recording declines, as well, the newspaper reported.
Those countries impacted include Mexico, China, the Dominican Republican, the Philippines, India, Haiti, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Jamaica.
And the number of immigrant visas for Africans is on track for a 15 percent decline, the Post said.
The newspaper noted the number of legal immigrants from Europe has increased slightly.
The Post said it was not clear whether the drop in the total number of visas was a result of diminishing interest in coming to the U.S. or whether Trump's tough talk on immigration had convinced people to stay away.
The Post said during Barack Obama's term in office, immigration visas jumped by 33 percent.
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