Global Immigrants Send $500 Billion Back Home

International migrants are sending more than $500 billion back to family members each year, almost triple the figure since 2000, providing a major economic boost to less-affluent nations, a Pew Research Center study shows.

A rising share of migrants live in high-income countries, including the U.S., by far the most common destination, according to the report released yesterday. The U.S. has a fifth of the world’s migrants, up from almost a sixth in 1990. It’s also the largest source of payments, sending $123.3 billion in 2012, the Pew analysis of World Bank data shows.