Many immigrants in the U.S. face a complicated set of challenges. They often must deal with learning a new language, overcoming a different culture and finding rewarding work.
All of these challenges can place extra stress on families and marriages, though some evidence indicates immigrants divorce at a lower rate than the overall U.S. population.
The stability of immigrant families
A report from the Institute for Family Studies sheds some light on the higher marriage rates and lower divorce rates of immigrants in general. Much of the information comes from U.S. Census data. About 72% of immigrants with children remain in a first marriage, compare with 60% of native-born Americans.
Other statistics support this view of stability in immigrant families. For example, unmarried immigrants between the ages of 18-64 married at a rate of 59 per 1,000, compared with a rate of 39 per 1,000 for native-born Americans. Also, in 2019 the same age group divorced at a rate of 13 per 1,000 married immigrants compared to 20 per 1,000 native-born Americans.
The stability of immigrants by region
The term immigrant refers to individuals from many areas of the world and many different cultures. Data shows that some localities hold a higher rate of stable families and marriages, while others hold a lower rate when it comes to family stability.
Immigrants from India remain in a first marriage 94% of the time, closely followed by Bangladesh immigrants at 90% in first marriages. On the other end of the spectrum, immigrants from Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Cuba and Honduras have divorce rates that approach nearly half of marriages. Many complicated factors go into divorce, including education and income levels.