Gender, Transnational Networks and Remittances: Evidence from Germany

Remittances from Germany are substantial. Cross-border transfers to family and friendship networks outside Germany are not only made by foreigners. Many naturalized migrants send money home as well. Here, we focus on international networks and gender-specific determinants of remittances from the senders' perspective, based on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) for the years 2001-2006. Our findings show, above all, that foreign women remit less money than foreign men. Using information on the social network in the home country we find, first, that the social network abroad explains part of gender differences in remittance behavior. Second, employing gender interaction terms for the social network effects suggests that remittance behavior is affected by traditional gender roles. Third, the migrant's social integration in the destination country matters. Remittance decisions of naturalized migrants do not show the aforementioned gender effect.