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Feeling Equal before the Law? The Impact of Access to Citizenship and Legal Status on Perceived Discrimination

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  • Adriana Rocío Cardozo Silva
  • Christopher Prömel

Abstract

In this study, we contribute to the literature about the effects of improving access to citizenship on integration outcomes. Hereby, we exploit exogenous variation from two citizenship reforms in Germany to estimate the effects of residency requirements on perceived discrimination, which is strongly linked to individual well-being, sense of belonging, and migration desires and decisions. We find that reducing waiting times to become eligible for citizenship decreases perceptions of discrimination. However, heterogeneity analyses reveal that these effects appear to be mostly limited to men and immigrants from Eastern European countries. In addition to our main analysis, we exploit exogenous variation from EU enlargement to show that citizens from countries that became part of the EU report significantly less discrimination than non-EU immigrants.

Suggested Citation

  • Adriana Rocío Cardozo Silva & Christopher Prömel, 2025. "Feeling Equal before the Law? The Impact of Access to Citizenship and Legal Status on Perceived Discrimination," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 1223, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    • Handle: RePEc:diw:diwsop:diw_sp1223
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Perceived Discrimination; Legal Status; Naturalization; EU Enlargement;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • J68 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Public Policy
    • J78 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - Public Policy (including comparable worth)
    • K37 - Law and Economics - - Other Substantive Areas of Law - - - Immigration Law

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