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on Economics of Human Migration |
| By: | Andersson, Fredrik W. (Statistics Sweden); Wadensjö, Eskil (Stockholm University) |
| Abstract: | The proportion of the population being of working age is decreasing. One way to counteract this development is accepting labor immigration. In this article, we look at the part of labor immigration that comes from what is called third countries (countries outside EEA). Some of those who come to Sweden stay only for a short time. We investigate whether those who leave and those who stay differ in terms of various characteristics. We find that those who are highly educated and have higher incomes leave Sweden to a greater extent than others who come. |
| Keywords: | integration, non-EEA migrants, labor migration, return migration |
| JEL: | F22 J15 J21 J61 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17765 |
| By: | Masaki, Takaaki; Nega, Nitsuh Mengist; Christina Wieser |
| Abstract: | This paper examines welfare disparities between in-camp refugees and host com- munities in Ethiopia, using data from the 2023 Socio-Economic Survey of Refugees in Ethiopia. The analysis reveals significant welfare gaps between in-camp refugees and hosts even after accounting for various other baseline socioeconomic char- acteristics: in-camp refugees exhibit 60 percent lower consumption per capita and poverty rates that are 40 percentage points higher compared to host communities. These disparities are also associated with limited employment opportunities and dependence on humanitarian aid among in-camp refugees. The study examines the relationship between host community characteristics and refugee welfare, revealing that more favorable socioeconomic environments benefit refugees, even when labor market outcomes are constrained by legal and structural barriers. Furthermore, the paper explores how employment outside camps may be linked to the welfare of in-camp refugees, as well as the reasons behind their pursuit of such opportunities despite restrictive policies. It finds that refugees working outside camps often originate from poorer households but report a greater sense of autonomy and control over their lives. These findings highlight the importance of economic inclusion as a pathway to self-reliance for in-camp refugees and emphasize the need to remove barriers to formal employment opportunities outside camps to improve their welfare. |
| Date: | 2025–04–29 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:11108 |
| By: | Caballero, Maria Esther (Carnegie Mellon University); Ippedico, Giuseppe (University of Nottingham); Peri, Giovanni (University of California, Davis) |
| Abstract: | We study how the US presidential election of 2016 affected the subsequent inflow of Mexican-born immigrants. We use the "Matricula Consular de Alta Seguridad" data to construct proxies for annual inflows and internal movements of Mexican-born individuals, including undocumented immigrants, across US commuting zones. We find that a 10-percentage point increase in the Republican vote share in a commuting zone reduced inflows by 1.8 percent after the 2016 Trump election. The internal relocation of established Mexican immigrants primarily explains this reduction, though inflows of new immigrants decreased as well. |
| Keywords: | migration, networks, political shocks |
| JEL: | D72 F22 J61 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17787 |
| By: | Paweł Strzelecki (Narodowy Bank Polski); Jakub Growiec (Narodowy Bank Polski); Robert Wyszyński (Narodowy Bank Polski) |
| Abstract: | Following the Russian military invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, a large wave of Ukrainian refugees arrived in Poland. By 2024, about 1 million Ukrainian refugees have settled in Poland, on top of about 1.5 million Ukrainians who had immigrated between 2014 and 2022, and about 0.9 million immigrants coming from other countries. In this paper we estimate the contribution of Ukrainian refugees, as well as economic migrants from Ukraine and immigrants from other source countries, to labour supply and economic growth in Poland. Using a unique survey dataset compiled at NBP, we are able to carefully account for the different socio-economic and demographic characteristics of these three distinct groups. We find that in 2021-23, immigrants contributed on average about 0.5 pp. to annual GDP growth per annum (18% of all growth), and 0.5 pp. (13% of all growth) in the preceding period 2013-21. While a significant group of pre-war Ukrainian immigrants left Poland after the Russian military invasion of their country, the contribution of labour of Ukrainian refugees alone amounted to 0.8 pp. per annum in 2021-23 (29% of all GDP growth). These contributions helped sustain economic growth in Poland despite the gradual decline in the dynamics of total factor productivity. |
| Keywords: | refugees, immigration, labour supply, economic growth, Poland, Ukraine |
| JEL: | E24 O47 F22 O15 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbp:nbpmis:376 |
| By: | Ma, Shuang (Guangzhou University); Mu, Ren (Texas A&M University) |
| Abstract: | This study investigates broadband internet's impact on rural-urban migration in China, using the Universal Broadband and Telecommunication Services pilot program as a quasi-experimental setting. Analyzing China Household Finance Survey data (2013-2021) through difference-in-differences estimation, we find that improved internet access significantly increased rural-urban migration. Effects were strongest in villages with initially low migrant populations, locations closer to county centers, and those with better road infrastructure. At the individual level, impacts were most pronounced among females, younger people, the more educated, and those from higher-income households. Increased attention to economic information, rather than enhanced e-commerce opportunities, appears to drive these migration decisions. Our findings suggest broadband creates “digital routes” facilitating outmigration rather than “digital roots” anchoring residents to rural areas. |
| Keywords: | migration, urbanization, information and communications technology, China |
| JEL: | O15 R2 L86 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17752 |
| By: | Fang, Tony (Memorial University of Newfoundland); Hartley, John (Memorial University of Newfoundland); Khan, Shanawaz (Memorial University of Newfoundland) |
| Abstract: | This article applies the ACL framework (Age at migration, Context/contact opportunities, and Life cycle stage) and uses qualitative interview data to compare the integration of Syrian adult & child refugees in St. John’s, Canada. Almost all children report having Canadian-born friends, outpacing the adults, facilitated by highly integrated classrooms. Their recreational activities are less structured, while adults focus on language school or settlement agency events. Children are more open to the new experiences and are much more optimistic about Canadian weather & food. They more often walk by bus to school, with adults favouring automobiles for transportation; this tends to be - because they are zoned to nearby schools instead of attending centralized language classes. |
| Keywords: | refugee integration, Atlantic Canada, youth refugees, refugee education, age differences, comparative study |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17785 |
| By: | Castro-Pires, Henrique (University of Miami); Fischer, Kai (Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE)); Mello, Marco (University of Aberdeen); Moscelli, Giuseppe (University of Surrey) |
| Abstract: | Restrictive immigration policies may force firms to abruptly change their workforce composition. But how does this impact the performance of these organizations? We study the effects of the 2016 Brexit referendum, which led to a drop in the share of EU nationality nurses in English hospitals. Using high-quality administrative patient-level data and a continuous difference-in-differences design which exploits the different pre-referendum hospital exposure to the shock, we estimate the causal effect of the workforce composition changes on hospital quality of care. We find that, in the post-referendum period, emergency patients admitted to NHS hospitals with a mean pre-referendum share of EU nurses faced an increase in mortality risk, equivalent to about 1, 485 additional deaths per year. These findings are consistent with a theory model that predicts a decrease in the quality of newly hired hospital workers to avert labour shortages. We provide empirical evidence in support of this mechanism by showing that the foreign joiner nurses hired in the post-referendum period were assigned to lower salary grades than those hired prior to the referendum, indicating lower levels of skills and job experience. |
| Keywords: | patient care, migration, worker mobility, labour supply, hospital quality, Brexit |
| JEL: | J45 J61 J68 I11 C26 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17797 |
| By: | Stelios Michalopoulos; Elie Murard; Elias Papaioannou; Seyhun Orcan Sakalli |
| Abstract: | More than a century has passed since the abrupt exodus of 1.2 million Greek Orthodox from Anatolia and their resettlement in Greece, a transformative event for the country’s social and demographic landscape. Today, more than one in three Greeks reports a refugee background. While its historical significance is well-documented, its short-, medium-, and long-term impact on human capital accumulation remains unexplored. How did forced displacement shape the educational trajectories of the uprooted and their offspring? Did refugees invest in portable skills to respond to uncertainty, or did they struggle to catch up with the autochthonous? To address these questions, we trace the educational investments of refugees and their descendants over the last 100 years, leveraging granular census data and a comprehensive mapping of both their origins in Anatolia and their settlements in Greece. The analysis provides compelling support for the uprootedness hypothesis. Though initially lagging, refugees settling in the Greek countryside eventually outperformed nearby natives in educational attainment. Their university choices also diverged, with refugees’ lineages favoring degrees transferable beyond the Greek labor market, such as engineering and medicine, and natives specializing in law and other fields with a strong home bias. Exploring additional mechanisms reveals the critical role of linguistic barriers and local economic conditions in shaping these outcomes, rather than the refugees’ pre-migration economic background. The widespread educational gains of refugees and their descendants over four generations offer some hope that the ongoing surge of forced displacement, despite its tragedy, if properly addressed by the international community, can be a backbone of economic resilience for the affected communities. |
| JEL: | J24 N34 N44 O15 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:33586 |
| By: | Hoang, Thu (Monash University) |
| Abstract: | Using plausibly exogenous fluctuations in foreign real income per capita and longitudinal data from Australia, we examine the impact of economic conditions in immigrant parents’ home countries on their children’s academic performance. We find that a one percent increase in real GDP per capita in parents’ home countries leads to a 0.01 standard deviation improvement in children’s standardised test scores. The effect is particularly pronounced among children with parents born in Asia, where extended family ties play a strong role. Our mediation analysis suggests that the impact is likely driven by increased private tutoring. These findings imply that economic conditions in immigrants’ home countries can shape the educational outcomes and future economic prospects of their children in destination countries, likely through family and social networks. |
| Keywords: | immigrants ; test scores ; macroeconomic conditions ; parental input ; family. JEL classifications: I21 ; J11 ; J15 ; J22. |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wrk:wrkesp:84 |
| By: | Mert Akan; Jose Maria Barrero; Nicholas Bloom; Thomas Bowen; Shelby R. Buckman; Steven J. Davis; Hyoseul Kim |
| Abstract: | We use matched employer-employee data to study where Americans live in relation to employer worksites. Mean distance from employee home to employer worksite rose from 15 miles in 2019 to 26 miles in 2023. Twelve percent of employees hired after March 2020 live at least fifty miles from their employers in 2023, triple the pre-pandemic share. Distance from employer rose more for persons in their 30s and 40s, in highly paid employees, and in Finance, Information, and Professional Services. Among persons who stay with the same employer from one year to the next, we find net migration to states with lower top tax rates and areas with cheaper housing. These migration patterns greatly intensify after the pandemic and are much stronger for high earners. Top tax rates fell 5.2 percentage points for high earners who stayed with the same employer but switched states in 2020. Finally, we show that employers treat distant employees as a more flexible margin of adjustment. |
| JEL: | J20 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:33582 |
| By: | Kumar, Santosh (University of Notre Dame); Shandal, Monica (University of California, Santa Cruz); Zucker, Ariel (UC Santa Cruz) |
| Abstract: | We examine the impact of rural road connectivity on economic and social outcomes in the context of India’s PMGSY, the world’s largest rural road program. Using a novel village-level survey explicitly designed around PMGSY’s rollout, we exploit quasi-random variation in road placement to estimate causal effects. We find that roads increase producer prices by 1.4 SD, reduce consumer prices by 0.6 SD, shift labor from agriculture to local casual work, and decrease short-term migration. Additionally, road connectivity improves governance, delays marriages, and improves wedding quality. Our findings highlight the role of infrastructure in shaping rural economies and social institutions. |
| Keywords: | migration, wages, prices, PMGSY, rural roads, India |
| JEL: | I15 J43 O12 O18 R23 R42 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17775 |
| By: | Fang, Tony (Memorial University of Newfoundland); Gunderson, Morley (University of Toronto); Ha, Viet Hoang (Memorial University of Newfoundland); Ming, Hui (Sichuan University) |
| Abstract: | Our difference-in-difference analysis indicates that Covid-19 had a disproportionately adverse effect on the employment of recent immigrants relative to the Canadian-born and this was especially the case in lower-level occupations and in industries hard hit by the pandemic. The effects of Covid on actual hours worked for those who remained employed were modest as were the differential effects for recent immigrants, highlighting that most of the adjustment occurred in the extensive margin of reduced employment rather than the intensive margin of hours worked. Covid was associated with higher wages for recent immigrants who remain employed relative to their Canadian-born counterparts, and this is especially the case for recent immigrants in lower-level occupations and hard-hit industries. Reasons for these patterns are discussed. |
| Keywords: | recent immigrants, Canada, COVID-19, difference-in-difference, employment, hours, wages |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17756 |
| By: | Kok, Chun Chee (Monash University); Lim, Gedeon (Hong Kong university); Shariat, Danial (UC Berkeley); Siddique, Abu (Royal Holloway, University of London); Tsuda, Shunsuke (University of Essex) |
| Abstract: | We exploit a population resettlement program of ethnic minorities in Malaysia to identify long-run effects of interethnic proximity on economic and political development. From 1948 to 1951, the colonial government moved 500, 000 rural Chinese into hundreds of isolated, mono-ethnic camps. In ethnic majority Malay communities adjacent to these camps, we find greater economic prosperity and lower vote shares for the ethno-nationalist Malay party. Effects are stronger in areas with historical, interethnic economic complementarities. Primary survey data suggests that trust-building and social integration were key channels. Our findings highlight the importance of persistent, localized contact in the co-evolution of economic and political development. |
| Keywords: | Malaysia, development, political preference, ethnicity, Chinese |
| JEL: | D72 O15 R23 J15 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17776 |