Undocumented immigrants paid almost $100 billion of taxes, underscoring the importance of border policies on the country’s tax collections, according to a new report.

One of the most common arguments for curtailing immigration is the cost borne by the US government. But undocumented immigrants pay more than a quarter, about 26%, of their income in taxes, in line with the median taxpayer, according to a report released Tuesday by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a left-leaning think tank.

In total, undocumented immigrants paid $96.7 billion, or roughly $9,000 per person, in taxes in 2022, the report shows. While their incomes are usually lower, they’re less likely to claim refunds or earn tax-preferred income.

About one third of the total dollars collected from undocumented immigrants funded programs they’re mostly barred from using, including $26 billion to Social Security and $6 billion to Medicare, the report said.

  • Maple Engineer@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    Many jobs require an SSN so if you want to work you need a stolen or fake SSN. Many employers don’t care if you are illegal as long as you have an SSN and they can say that they checked.

    • girlfreddy@lemmy.ca
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      4 months ago

      Many jobs require an SSN so if you want to work you need a stolen or fake SSN.

      Not according to the study. Go read the link I posted to find out the facts.