Visa Overstays Make up Almost 40 Percent of Illegal U.S. Entries

Statista ^ | 05/21/2025 | Katharina Buchholz,

[SeekAndFind]

The share of people becoming undocumented immigrants in the United States not by illegally crossing a border, but by overstaying their visas was almost 40 percent of estimated new undocumented immigrants in the fiscal year 2023.

While an estimated 860,000 new undocumented arrivals were created due to illegal border crossings that year, more than 510,000 people overstayed their visas.

This fact has in the past called into question the effectiveness of sealing off borders to curb illegal immigration. During the first Trump term, when the construction of a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border took central stage, the number of overstayers even slightly outnumbered that of illegal crossers. Now, the Trump administration is also attacking on the other front, this weekend warning Indians not to overstay U.S. visas or risk lifetime bans to the country.

As Statista's Katharina Buchholz reports, the absolute number of Indian visa overstayers in FY of 2023 was around 19,000 - rank 7 among nations, but the highest-ranking non-Latin American or Caribbean country. In FY 2016, this was still as high as 25,000 people.

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The stock of undocumented Indian immigrants was most recently estimated at 725,000 people - rank 3 after Mexico and El Salvador.

In terms of illegal crossers (calculated based on the most recent data on border encounters), Latin American countries and Haiti made up the top 10 of the most common nationalities illegally crossing the Southern U.S. border, with Mexicans making up almost a third of all illegal crossers.

The prevalence of the different modes of illegal immigration has been changing in the last two decades.

In the year 2000, 400,000 illegal aliens had come across the border and only 225,000 had overstayed their visa, according to a report by the Center for Migration Studies.

The trend reversed in 2007 to include more overstayers than wholly undocumented entries and again in 2019, when illegal border crossings started to soar once more.

[Ronaldus Magnus III]

Many of these Marxist Federal Judges have definitely overstayed their welcome.

[mass55th]

Stop handing visas out.

[Governor Dinwiddie]

Visa applicants should provide proof of $50K liquid assets. They should show proof of medical insurance acceptable in the USA. They should be forced to wear an ankle monitor. They should be forced to check-in with ICE every day.

[KC_Conspirator]

This data seems out of whack.

[Libloather]

What happens if you overstay a visa in other countries? No big deal?

[Georgia Girl 2]

I’ve read this statistic before. About 40% of the illegals fly here on the airlines and then just disappear into the country when their visas expire.

[Organic Panic]

Yeah? So? Deport all the figgers

[Libloather]

Here ya go. This is how the chicoms deal with it -

2. If one overstays the visa for a significant period, usually over one month, he might be put into a detention camp for 5 to 15 days and repatriated to his home country. It’s possible he will be blacklisted, which will affect his re-entry to China, and he may be prohibited from entering the country for ten years. In addition to this, it might also influence one’s visa application for other countries.

https://www.travelchinaguide.com/embassy/visa/form.htm

[VanShuyten]

“ While an estimated 860,000 new undocumented arrivals were created due to illegal border crossings that year, more than 510,000 people overstayed their visas.”

That makes 1.3 million illegals, but other sources say about 2.5-3 million illegals came in 2023.

Who to believe?

[linMcHlp]

bttt

[griffin]

BS

[A_Former_Democrat]

So overstay vises has called into, questioned the effectiveness of blocking illegal border crossing?

Yeah, that makes a whole Lotta F sense

[Bernard]

In the year 2000, 400,000 illegal aliens had come across the border and only 225,000 had overstayed their visa

That's 36%. so going to 40% is almost rounding. I thought "journalists" only had problems with numbers that involve dollar signs.

[paudio]

The US actually have a different system of visa for international students. They have visa to enter/exit but also a document that shows they are students. The visa is only good for entering the US usually only last for a month or so but in the passport there’s a small for that says D/S - duration of stay/ study.

So I am wondering if this is considered overstay?

[antidemoncrat]

I wonder how many of them are enrolled in universities at our expense?

[Ex-Con777]

So 64% crossed illegally, meaning 2 out of 3. We can play the game too.

EC

[MikeyB806]

Chip implants. We have the technology to insert and remove as necessary to manage visa-holders. It just needs to be a condition of obtaining the visa.

[BobL]

“This fact has in the past called into question the effectiveness of sealing off borders to curb illegal immigration.”

Such BS - the thing about visa overstays is that they were at least VETTED...far different than people who sneak across the border.

And, by the way, if we have that degree of visa overstays, perhaps tightening the system might help - something like making every person from a high-risk country have to buy a bond that assures their departure (similar to bail), if they don’t depart by the required date, the government gets the bond money - and bounty hunters can track down those people.

[bobbo666]

Any packet of lies to protect the ~20M illegal VOTES.