New Jersey Population Increase Slows as Net Immigration Drops by More Than Half

International migration into New Jersey plummeted more than 50% between mid-2024 and mid-2025. The numbers crashed from 121,000 down to 53,000 people, based on U.S. Census Bureau data released Thursday. State population climbed 0.4% to roughly 9.55 million residents.

This sharp decline ranked fifth-largest across the nation. New York witnessed a two-thirds plunge to approximately 96,000, whereas Pennsylvania tumbled 54% to about 27,000. Florida attracted the most newcomers at nearly 179,000, though that figure sat 37% below the year before.

Census officials estimate immigration nationwide crested at 2.7 million from July 2023 through June 2024. By June 2025, the count had shrunk to 1.3 million.

The drop "was caused by both a decrease in immigration and an increase in emigration," or people moving out of the United States, according to Census Bureau staff.

Current administration policies make it "much less attractive to come to the United States," said James Hughes, a Rutgers University professor who studies state demographic trends, according to NJ Spotlight News.

Peter Hepburn teaches sociology at Rutgers University in Newark. He found proof "that Trump administration policies are having a chilling effect on immigration" across the country. These declines, he argued, should be "interpreted in light of the large increases in immigration that we saw during the Biden administration."

Census officials project net migration for the year ending June 30 could drop another 75% nationwide to 321,000. The nation hasn't seen negative net migration in over half a century.

Births and deaths drove close to two-thirds of the 42,000 total gain. About 101,000 babies arrived in the state, while deaths decreased too. Net migration for the year ending June 30 was fewer than 16,000 people, compared to around 86,000 the previous year.

Ocean County led gains, adding roughly 5,400 people. Essex County grew by nearly 34,000. Twenty of the state's 21 counties added residents this past year. Cape May stood alone, losing around 1,900 people, or about 2% of its population.