Immigrants Pay Millions In Taxes To New Jersey, Local Towns: Report

NEW JERSEY — Despite what you may hear, immigrants do pay taxes – and they’re making “significant contributions” to New Jersey’s economy, a report says.

On Monday, the day that federal income taxes are due, nonprofit New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) and the Immigration Research Initiative (IRI) released a study which claims that newly arriving immigrants are making a big financial impact on the state.

According to researchers, nearly one in four residents of the Garden State (roughly 2.2 million people) are immigrants. Every 1,000 new immigrants can be expected to earn a combined $21 million in annual wages during their first year in New Jersey – paying a combined $1.8 million in state and local taxes along the way.

The report also found that after five years, the same 1,000 immigrants can be expected to grow their wages by approximately 57 percent, totaling $33 million in aggregate wages. Over the same time period, state and local tax collections should increase to $2.9 million for the same 1,000 immigrants – a 61 percent increase.

Read the full study and learn about its methodology here.

“Despite the positive role immigrants play in New Jersey and around the country, there has been a rise in xenophobia and anti-immigrant policymaking in a number of states,” researchers said, asking state lawmakers to improve immigrants’ wages and lower barriers to social services such as health care, legal services, education and affordable housing.

“Day in and day out, immigrants help keep New Jersey running, and we need public policy to reflect that reality,” said Marleina Ubel, a senior policy analyst at the NJPP.

“What we see in the data is the modern-day American Dream in action, and we’re all better off for it,” Ubel continued. “New immigrants are quickly entering the workforce, providing for themselves and strengthening the economic vitality of their communities.”

“This means that there’s more money circulating within the state, and more tax revenue to fund schools, libraries and other public infrastructure,” Ubel added.

There’s also another reason to cheer for the success of immigrants in New Jersey, advocates said: they’re people you know and depend on.

“Immigrants are central to the daily lives of millions of people in New Jersey,” said Anthony Capote, a senior data and policy analyst at the IRI.

“They are our family members, co-workers, employees and own many of the businesses we patronize every day,” Capote said. “The more we empower immigrants to succeed, the more quickly they begin to contribute to our economy and communities in tremendous ways.”

• See Related: NJ Immigrants Own 47 Percent Of 'Main Street' Businesses, Study Says
• See Related: 5 Reasons Why Immigrants Make New Jersey Better

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