Abstract
In the U.S., fertility intentions have declined overall and across immigrant generations. This study explored fertility intentions and the role of immigration status among undocumented immigrants using data from a mixed-methods survey of 120 Asian and Latinx undocumented immigrants in California conducted in 2022. Overall, 57% of participants intended to have children. Additionally, 38% of participants indicated that their immigration status impacted their fertility intentions, and described connections through economic precarity and fear of deportation. This study adds to prior qualitative literature further demonstrating that undocumented immigrants face barriers to having children and many do not intend to have children.
Keywords: Fertility intentions, Pregnancy plans, Undocumented immigrants, Documentation status
Introduction
In the U.S., fertility intentions and fertility have recently declined, including across immigrant generations [1]. Immigration enforcement has also increased, which disproportionately impacts undocumented immigrants [2]. Further, undocumented immigrants struggle to access healthcare based on uninsurance, lack of knowledge of healthcare systems, and poor quality healthcare experiences [3]. In qualitative literature, undocumented immigrants emphasize their desire to achieve educational goals, financial stability, and/or secure partnership before having children [4,5]. Given that undocumented immigrants face unique barriers to achieving these goals, scholars suggest that immigration status indirectly influences fertility intentions through these factors, even if participants do not consider them directly linked [4,5]. However, no literature has reported quantitative data on fertility intentions or the role of immigration status on fertility intentions among undocumented immigrants. We build upon prior studies using a mixed-methods survey of undocumented immigrants. In particular, we provide initial quantitative estimates of whether participants intend to have children and whether they believe their immigration status impacts their fertility intentions. We also qualitatively explore the ways in which undocumented immigrants believe their immigration status impacts their fertility intentions.
Methods
This study leverages data from a 2022 survey of Asian and Latinx undocumented immigrants aged 18–40 in California. Participants self-reported their immigration status and could have Deferred Actions for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, which provides temporary work authorization and protection from deportation, although must be renewed biannually. We analyzed data from 120 respondents assigned female sex at birth. This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board at the University of California, Los Angeles (IRB#20–000972). Participants were asked whether they intended to become pregnant in the future and whether their immigration status impacts their fertility intentions, which were coded as two dichotomous variables. Those who indicated that immigration status impacts their fertility intentions were asked to explain their response in an open-ended question. We examined frequencies and chi-square tests for categorical variables and organized qualitative responses into themes.
Results
Table 1 shows that most participants were Latinx, aged 18–27, DACA recipients, and had no children. Most participants intended to have children (57%) and reported their immigration status did not impact their fertility intentions (62%). Fertility intentions did not differ by any sociodemographic characteristics in chi-square tests. However, a greater proportion of those who did not intend to have children (56%) than those who intended to have children (44%) believed that their immigration status impacted their fertility intentions (p = 0.042).
Table 1.
Sample characteristics and differences by fertility intentions among undocumented immigrants from a 2022 survey in California.
| Variable | Total Sample (N = 120) | Intend to Have Children (N = 68) | P-Value* |
|---|---|---|---|
| N (%) | |||
| Race/Ethnicity | 0.510 | ||
| Asian | 20 (16.7) | 10 (14.7) | |
| Latinx | 100 (83.3) | 58 (85.3) | |
| Missing | 0 | – | |
| Age | 0.729 | ||
| 18–22 | 53 (44.2) | 32 (47.1) | |
| 23–27 | 53 (44.2) | 29 (42.7) | |
| 28–40 | 14 (11.7) | 7 (10.3) | |
| Missing | 0 | – | |
| Parity | 0.735 | ||
| 0 Children | 114 (95.0) | 65 (95.6) | |
| 1+ Children | 6 (5.0) | 4 (4.4) | |
| Missing | 0 | – | |
| DACA Status | 0.525 | ||
| Non-Recipient | 38 (31.7) | 23 (34.3) | |
| Recipient | 81 (67.5) | 44 (65.7) | |
| Missing | 1 (0.8) | – | |
| Sexual Activity | 0.605 | ||
| Never Had Sex | 34 (28.3) | 18 (26.5) | |
| Ever Had Sex | 86 (71.7) | 50 (73.5) | |
| Missing | 0 | – | |
| Fertility Intentions | – | ||
| Does Not Intend to Have Children | 52 (43.3) | – | |
| Intends to Have Children | 68 (56.7) | – | |
| Missing | 0 | – | |
| Impact of Immigration Status on Fertility Intentions | 0.042 | ||
| No impact | 74 (61.7) | 47 (70.2) | |
| Some impact | 45 (37.5) | 20 (29.9) | |
| Missing | 1 (0.8) | – |
P-values from chi-square tests.
Among the 37 participants who responded to the open-ended question, 60% did not intend to have children. All but one indicated that their immigration status led them to delay or entirely forgo childbearing. These participants noted that their immigration status resulted in difficulty achieving financial stability and fear of deportation, ultimately impacting their fertility intentions.
First, several participants described difficulties achieving financial security, which they felt was necessary before having children. Some participants were unsure of their ability to secure and maintain a job: “As a DACA recipient, it is unsure if I will be able to continue to renew [DACA] and have a stable job.” As a result, many participants did not anticipate having sufficient financial security to feel comfortable having children: “Currently I only make enough for myself and I cannot imagine ever having enough money to support a child.” Some participants referenced their own experience growing up in poverty and wanting to avoid repeating that experience: “I want to be able to raise my children without that financial burden.”
Second, some participants feared deportation, which made them not want to have children while undocumented: “I would not want to be ripped away from my child like so many people in the past have been.” Some emphasized their parents’ experience of fear which they wanted to avoid: “I don’t want to live with the same fear my parents felt…fear that they would be separated from their children.” Some participants described their own experiences with deportation: “My mom was deported and I was left to take care of my siblings and father. I never want to put my kids in that position.”
Discussion
This is the first study to our knowledge to report quantitative estimates from undocumented immigrants of fertility intentions and whether fertility intentions are impacted by immigration status. We found that 43% of undocumented immigrants did not intend to have children. This is about three times the 10–16% of women in a similar age group and birth cohort in the National Survey of Family Growth who did not intend to have children [1]. This suggests that undocumented immigrants face significant barriers which lead them to choose not to have children.
We also found that 38% of undocumented immigrants believed their immigration status impacted their fertility intentions. These participants linked their ability to achieve financial security and fear of deportation with both their immigration status and their fertility intentions. Similarly, in a prior qualitative study, most undocumented immigrants stated their immigration status did not impact their fertility intentions, yet they also emphasized the importance of achieving educational goals and financial stability prior to having children [4]. The authors suggested that because these goals are more difficult for undocumented immigrants to achieve, they represent an indirect pathway through which immigration status impacts fertility intentions [4]. In another prior qualitative study, participants described their fear of deportation as a factor that relates to both immigration status and fertility intentions [5]. Across both our and prior studies, participants – even those with DACA – discussed the uncertainty they felt about their future, which made them concerned about having children [4,5].
Future research should build upon these findings to further investigate fertility intentions among undocumented immigrants including the direct and indirect pathways through which immigration status may impact fertility intentions. Larger, more recent studies of undocumented immigrants across states would be useful. Due to increased immigration enforcement since 2025 [2], even more undocumented immigrants may now report they do not intend to have children and may link this decision with their immigration status. Policies which provide more stability, including long-term work authorization and protection from deportation, could help undocumented immigrants overcome barriers to achieve their fertility goals.
Acknowledgements
RW was supported, in part, by the California Center for Population Research at UCLA with training support (T32-HD007545) and core support (P2C-HD041022) from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Funding
The BRAVE Study was supported by the Hellman Foundation and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) (R01HD109194-01). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Footnotes
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Rebecca Woofter: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Formal analysis, Conceptualization. Angubeen Khan: Writing – review & editing, Formal analysis. May Sudhinaraset: Writing – review & editing, Supervision, Funding acquisition, Data curation.
Declaration of competing interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Ethical statement
All study procedures were reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board at the University of California, Los Angeles (IRB #20–000972).
Data availability
Data reported in this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Associated Data
This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.
Data Availability Statement
Data reported in this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.