Over 90 Percent of all U.S. Latino Children Were Born in the United States

Over the last decade, Latino populations have accounted for over half of the total population growth in the United States. Currently, almost 19 million Hispanic or Latino children live in the United States, and as of 2018, accounted for approximately one-quarter of all U.S. children under age 18.

Although Latino children are diverse in terms of ethnic heritage, the vast majority (93%) are U.S-born. Nonetheless, the immigrant experience remains central to many Latino children’s households; slightly more than half (53%) of Latino children live with at least one foreign-born parent, and research estimates that approximately one-quarter of Latino children have at least one parent who is an unauthorized immigrant.

Hispanic families have been especially hard hit by COVID-related economic downturn. However, economic hardship has been a reality for many Latino children since before COVID-19; in 2018, approximately one-quarter of Latino children (25.9%) lived below the official poverty level ($25,100 per year for a family of four with two children), while more than half (55.9%) lived in poverty or near-poverty (<200% of the official poverty level or $50,200 for a family of four).