Did Arab and Muslim Immigration to the U.S. Continue After Trump’s Second Term?

People from Arab and majority-Muslim countries continued to enter the United States as immigrants, refugees, and visa holders after President Trump’s second inauguration in January 2025. While exact figures for “Muslim” immigration are impossible to determine—since U.S. immigration data does not record religion—policy changes during Trump’s second term reshaped several migration pathways, slowed processing, and altered refugee admissions.

1) What the data can — and can’t — tell us

U.S. immigration statistics record country of birth, nationality, visa class, refugee status and similar administrative categories, but they do not collect religion on immigration applications. That means we can track immigrants from Arab or majority-Muslim countries (for example, Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Morocco, etc.) but cannot say how many incoming immigrants are Muslim. Analysts therefore use country/region of origin as a proxy for “Arab” or “MENA” migration, but that is an imperfect proxy.

2) Overall flows of people from MENA / Arab countries continued

Recent analyses and census/ACS-based estimates show that Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) immigration to the U.S. was rising in the decade through 2022 — the MENA immigrant population grew faster than the overall foreign-born population and reached about 1.2 million by 2022. That trend did not abruptly stop at the start of 2025; people continued to come via family, employment, humanitarian (refugee/asylee) and other channels.

3) Policy environment after January 2025 affected some routes

President Trump’s return to office in January 2025 produced policy moves that reshaped some legal pathways: early in his second term there were executive actions and proposals affecting travel/visa restrictions and refugee policy. Advocates and legal groups warned that proposed travel bans or tightened vetting would reduce visa issuances for certain countries and complicate refugee resettlement, while DHS/State guidance adjusted refugee ceilings and processing priorities. Those changes tend to slow or reduce some forms of admissions (especially refugee admissions and some non-immigrant visas) even while family-based immigration and employment-based green cards continue under existing laws and backlog processes.

4) Refugees and asylum: mixed picture

The State Department’s refugee admissions planning and DHS processing determine how many refugees are resettled each fiscal year. The proposed/reflected levels for FY2025 and subsequent guidance show shifting priorities and sometimes lower ceilings compared to earlier years — which reduces the number of people (including from Arab and majority-Muslim countries) admitted through formal refugee resettlement. However, other admissions channels (family-based adjustment, employment visas, Special Immigrant Visas such as Afghan SIVs) can and did continue. For precise refugee arrival counts by nationality one should consult the State Department and DHS monthly reports.

• People from Arab and majority-Muslim countries did continue to migrate to the U.S. after January 2025, but certain visa classes saw reduced approvals or longer processing times where new vetting rules applied.

• Because religion is not recorded, it’s incorrect to claim a numeric “Muslim arrivals” total without careful caveats.

• Community organizations, resettlement agencies, and researchers often track nationality and refugee/asylee status to understand who is arriving and to help new arrivals. For the most up-to-date country-by-country arrival numbers consult DHS/OHSS and the State Department refugee admission reports.

Quick caveat on headlines and politics

President Trump’s second term began in January 2025 (certified by Congress), which prompted immediate political and administrative shifts. Media coverage and congressional debate followed closely, and some executive actions signaled more restrictive stances on travel and refugee policy. Those actions changed the speed and mechanics of some pathways but did not create a total stop on arrivals from Arab or Muslim-majority countries.

Want exact numbers? — How I can help next

If you want, I can pull the most recent month-by-month DHS/OHSS and State Department refugee admission tables (e.g., arrivals by nationality, refugee admissions by country, or USCIS adjustment-of-status approvals) and produce a short table showing arrivals from specific Arab countries for 2024–2025. That will give the clearest, sourced picture. (Note: those tables show country of origin, not religion.)