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How much is a green card worth? Evidence from Mexican men who marry women born in the U.S

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  • Chi, Miao
  • Drewianka, Scott

Abstract

Many countries impose restrictions on some immigrants' job mobility, likely reducing their wages. We quantify such effects for Mexican-born men in the U.S. by recognizing that immigrants who marry U.S. natives receive expedited “green cards” (Permanent Residency). Robust IV estimates indicate that intermarried Mexicans earn a 40 percent wage premium, and larger for the most mobile subgroups. Analogous premiums are statistically insignificant for men from Puerto Rico, who acquire no new rights because they are already U.S. citizens. Attributing the approximately 30 percent difference to green cards, we estimate that eliminating wait times would increase Mexicans' mean earnings $120,000–$150,000 in present value.

Suggested Citation

  • Chi, Miao & Drewianka, Scott, 2014. "How much is a green card worth? Evidence from Mexican men who marry women born in the U.S," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 103-116.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:labeco:v:31:y:2014:i:c:p:103-116
    DOI: 10.1016/j.labeco.2014.10.004
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    Cited by:

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    2. Matthew Gregg & Melinda C. Miller, 2022. "Race and agriculture during the assimilation era: Evidence from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 46(37), pages 1109-1136.
    3. Miao Chi, 2017. "Improved legal status as the major source of earnings premiums associated with intermarriage: evidence from the 1986 IRCA amnesty," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 15(2), pages 691-706, June.
    4. Meyer, Andrew, 2016. "Is unemployment good for the environment?," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 18-30.
    5. Delia Furtado & Tao Song, 2015. "Intermarriage and Socioeconomic Integration," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 662(1), pages 207-222, November.
    6. Bansak, Cynthia & Dziadula, Eva & Zavodny, Madeline, 2023. "The value of a green card in the U.S. marriage market: A tale of chain migration?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    7. Eva Dziadula, 2022. "Match quality and divorce among naturalized U.S. citizens," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 89(1), pages 37-61, July.
    8. Ben A. Rissing, 2022. "Trust but sometimes verify: Regulatory enforcement in attestation‐based immigration programs," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(1), pages 327-354, January.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Immigration; Mobility; Green card; International intermarriage;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure

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