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Where Do U.S. Immigrants Come From, and Why?

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Author Info
Ximena Clark
Timothy J. Hatton
Jeffrey G. Williamson

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Abstract

The United States has experienced rising immigration levels and changing source since the 1950s. The changes in source have been attributed to the 1965 Amendments to the Immigration Act that abolished country-quotas and replaced them with a system that emphasized family reunification. Some believed that the Amendments would not change the 'traditional' sources of US immigrants. Given this view, it seems all the more remarkable that the sources of immigration changed so dramatically. This paper isolates the economic and demographic fundamentals that determined immigration rates by source from 1971 to 1998 -- income, education, demographic composition and inequality. The paper also allows for persistence - big US foreign-born stocks implying a strong 'friends and neighbors' pull on current immigrant flows. Specific policy variables are included which are derived directly from the quotas allocated to different visa categories. Parameter estimates from the panel data are then used to implement counterfactual simulations that serve to isolate the effects of immigration policy as well as source-country economic and demographic conditions.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 8998.

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Date of creation: Jun 2002
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:8998

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics

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References listed on IDEAS
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  1. Karemera, David & Oguledo, Victor Iwuagwu & Davis, Bobby, 2000. "A Gravity Model Analysis of International Migration to North America," Applied Economics, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 32(13), pages 1745-55, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Timothy J. Hatton & Jeffrey G. Williamson, 2001. "Demographic and Economic Pressure on Emigration Out of Africa," NBER Working Papers 8124, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. Chiswick, Barry R., 2000. "Are Immigrants Favorably Self-Selected? An Economic Analysis," IZA Discussion Papers 131, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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  4. George J. Borjas, 1994. "The Economics of Immigration," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 32(4), pages 1667-1717, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Borjas, George J, 1987. "Self-Selection and the Earnings of Immigrants," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 77(4), pages 531-53, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. Guillermina Jasso & Mark R. Rosenzweig & James P. Smith, 1998. "The Changing Skills of New Immigrants to the United States: Recent Trends and Their Determinants," NBER Working Papers 6764, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Dominique M. Gross & Nicolas Schmitt, 2006. "Why do Low- and High-Skill Workers Migrate? Flow Evidence from France," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich. [Downloadable!]
  2. Hatton, Timothy J., 2003. "Explaining Trends in UK Immigration," CEPR Discussion Papers 4019, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. David McKenzie & John Gibson & Steven Stillman, 2006. "How Important is Selection? Experimental vs Non-experimental Measures of Income Gains from Migration," Working Papers in Economics 06/03, University of Waikato, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  4. Gross, Dominique M., 2006. "Immigration to Switzerland - the case of the Former Republic of Yugoslavia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3880, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  5. David McKenzie & John Gibson & Steven Stillman, 2006. "How Important Is Selection? Experimental vs. Non-Experimental Measures of the Income Gains from Migration," IZA Discussion Papers 2087, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  6. Timothy Hatton & Jeffery Williamson, 2002. "What Fundamentals Drive World Migration?," CEPR Discussion Papers 458, Centre for Economic Policy Research, Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. David McKenzie & John Gibson & Steven Stillman, 2006. "How Important is Selection? Experimental vs Non-experimental Measures of the Income Gains of Migration," Working Papers 06_02, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research. [Downloadable!]
  8. Chellaraj, Gnanaraj & Maskus, Keith E. & Mattoo, Aaditya, 2005. "The contribution of skilled immigration and international graduate students to U.S. innovation," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3588, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  9. McKenzie, David & Gibson, John & Stillman, Steven, 2006. "How important is selection ? Experimental versus non-experimental measures
    of the income gains from migration    ," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3906, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  10. Facchini, Giovanni & Mayda, Anna Maria, 2008. "From Individual Attitudes towards Migrants to Migration Policy Outcomes: Theory and Evidence," IZA Discussion Papers 3512, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  11. Nicolas Péridy, 2006. "The European Union and its new neighbors: an estimation of migration potentials," Economics Bulletin, Economics Bulletin, vol. 6(2), pages 1-11. [Downloadable!]
  12. Anna Maria Mayda, 2005. "International Migration: A Panel Data Analysis of Economic and Non-Economic Determinants," IZA Discussion Papers 1590, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  13. Hatton, Timothy J. & Williamson, Jeffrey G., 2004. "International Migration in the Long-Run: Positive Selection, Negative Selection and Policy," IZA Discussion Papers 1304, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  14. Wei Chi & Brian McCall, . "Immigrants and the Receipt of Unemployment Insurance Benefits," Working Papers 0702, Industrial Relations Center, University of Minnesota (Twin Cities Campus). [Downloadable!]
  15. Anzelika Zaiceva, 2004. "Implications of EU Accession for International Migration: An Assessment of Potential Migration Pressure," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich. [Downloadable!]
  16. Alessandra Venturini & Riccardo Faini, 2008. "Development and Migration: Lessons from Southern Europe," CHILD Working Papers wp10_08, CHILD - Centre for Household, Income, Labour and Demographic economics - ITALY. [Downloadable!]
  17. Milo Bianchi, 2007. "Immigration policy and self-selecting migrants," PSE Working Papers 2007-41, PSE (Ecole normale supérieure), revised Jul 2008. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  18. Abdeslam Marfouk, 2008. "The African Brain Drain: Scope and Determinants," Working Papers DULBEA 08-07.RS, Université libre de Bruxelles, Department of Applied Economics (DULBEA). [Downloadable!]
  19. Federico Foders, 2003. "Long-Run Determinants of Immigration to Germany 1974-1999: A Ricardian Framework," Kiel Working Papers 1187, Kiel Institute for the World Economy. [Downloadable!]
  20. Kevin O'Rourke, 2004. "The Era of Free Migration: Lessons for Today," The Institute for International Integration Studies Discussion Paper Series iiisdp018, IIIS. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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