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Description

This systematic literature review is focused on how sanctuary policies in the United States impact immigrant wellbeing. Although sanctuary policies do not have a legal definition, they generally involve the local or state government limiting cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities to support newcomers (Aramayo et al., 2025; Houston et al., 2022). Municipalities can also encourage civil society to meet basic needs of immigrants through humanitarian assistance (Vitiello, 2022). These policies and practices could be implemented to foster immigrant wellbeing, health, safety, and inclusion of immigrants, (Houston et al., 2023) but the effectiveness of this goal is not well-known (Kiehne & Hafen, 2022; Houston et al., 2023). In this systematic literature review, twenty peer-reviewed articles demonstrated the themes of benefits, disadvantages, and no difference of a range of sanctuary policies on various aspects of immigrant wellbeing. Implications of this research include a need for increased publicity of sanctuary protections (Davis, 2020), a multilayered approach of preventive health, and further research on health impacts of immigrant inclusive policies (Kiehne & Hafen, 2022).

Publication Date

4-30-2026

Keywords

Key words: sanctuary policies, immigrant wellbeing, United States

Impact of Sanctuary Policies on Immigrant Wellbeing in the United States: A Systematic Literature Review

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