The Planning Institute of Jamaica says migration to the United States remains a key economic factor for Jamaica, even as the US moves to suspend the processing of immigrant visas from Jamaica.
PIOJ data show that an average of nearly 17,000 Jamaicans migrated to the US each year between 2013 and 2022, peaking at more than 23,000 in 2016.
The United States has announced an indefinite suspension of immigrant visa processing from Jamaica and 74 other countries, effective January 21.
The PIOJ estimates that between 1.1 and 1.5 million Jamaicans now live in the United States, mainly in New York and Florida—making the US the largest source of remittance inflows to the Jamaican economy.
Remittances from Jamaicans living and working in the US totalled US$238 million in October last year, an 8.3 per cent decline compared with the same month a year earlier.
For the period January to October, remittance inflows from the US amounted to US$2.8 billion.
These inflows accounted for just over 15 per cent of Jamaica's economic output in 2024, down from more than 18 per cent in 2022, reflecting a gradual easing in the economy's dependence on remittances.
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