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Immigration

Encyclopedia : I : IM : IMM : Immigration

 

Immigration is the act of relocating to another country or region. An immigrant is a person who intends to stay long-term (often forever), in contrast to a casual visitor or traveler.

Nationality laws usually cover immigration and citizenship.

Contents

Why people immigrate

Legal status of Persons
Concepts
Citizenship
Nationality
Naturalization
Immigration
Illegal immigration
Legal designations
Citizen
Native-born citizen
Naturalized citizen
Dual-citizen
Alien
Migrant worker
Refugee
Illegal immigrant
Criminal
Prisoner
Slave
Political prisoner
(Enemy alien
Enemy combatant
Administrative detainee)
Social politics
Immigration law
Nationality law
Nationalism
Nativism
Immigration debate
"Second-class citizen"
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People immigrate for the following reasons:

Note that many of these refer primarily to the motive for emigration from the country of origin. It may be assumed that those who emigrate to escape a problem do so in the hope that they will not face the same problem in the destination to which they immigrate.

The majority of immigration occurs for economic reasons of one sort or another, as wage rates and living expenses vary greatly between different countries. Poor individuals of less developed countries can have far higher standards of living in more developed countries than in their originating countries. Likewise, people who are not very well off but are financially independent and living in highly developed countries can live better in a country where living standards are lower. One example of the former is immigration to the United States from Mexico and Central American counties, while an example of the latter is immigration of retired British citizens to Spain. For the poor in undeveloped countries, the economic pressure to migrate can become so high that when legal means are restricted, people immigrate illegally.

Differing perspectives on immigration

Some free-market libertarians believe that a free global labor market with no restrictions on immigration would, in the long run, boost global prosperity. Major business interests have been among the strongest advocates of liberalization of immigration laws since movement of personnel is essential to the creation of true multinational corporations.[[Citing sources citation needed]]

Another school of thought is offered by protectionists, who prefer closed labor markets or who see liberal immigration [practices] as a form of corporate welfare where business interests use inexpensive or free government immigration benefits, rather than corporate resources, to compensate employees. Also among those on the opposite side of the issue are nationalists who propose militarizing borders; and xenophobes who fear the presence of foreigners, though these views are not shared by all or even most immigration reductionists. Still others feel that the focus should be taken off of immigration control and placed on the importance of equal rights for immigrants to avoid what they believe to be corporate exploitation of immigrant poverty.

Some countries, such as Japan, allow for relatively little immigration. However, even in countries that allow for relatively larger levels of immigration, there is disagreement over the numbers, policies, and implementation. Those who support more restricted immigration may argue that the current levels of immigration serve to depress wages and circumvent unionisation, and contribute to unsustainable levels of population growth. Others may disagree, perhaps arguing that overly restrictive immigration policies and practices do not address the economic demand for work emanating from wealthier countries, do not protect the security or cohesiveness of the country, and may endanger the lives of legitimate refugees from political or racial oppression.

Immigration has become an increasingly controversial topic among environmental activists in recent years, especially within the Sierra Club in the United States. Some environmentalists concerned with overpopulation favor limiting immigration as a means of isolating the effects of human population growth, while others argue that overpopulation and environmental degradation are global problems that should be addressed by other methods.

Some theorists have argued that the policies of the recipient country aimed at integrating immigrants into the political, social, and economic environment are more important than the level of immigration itself."[The French riots]," The Economist, Nov 10 2005. This idea may explain the relative success of immigration in some countries, such as Canada.[[Citing sources citation needed]]

The right to freedom of movement of an individual within National borders is often contained within the constitution or in a countries human rights legislation but these rights are restricted to citizens and exclude all others. Some argue that the freedom of movement both within and between countries is a basic human right and that Nationalism and immigration policies of State Governments violate the human right of freedom of movement that those same governments recognise within their own borders. According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, fundamental human rights are violated when Citizens are forbidden to leave their country. (Article 13). Though of course this only assists immigrants with the first part of their immigration process and does not assist with the second, of finding a new home. States systematically capitalise on this deficiency in full rights to freedom of movement to their advantage by permitting and actively attracting the educated, skilled, and wealthy with the right to move to their country as advantageous to their economy, while declining the rights of less privilaged individuals those same rights. These policies are in direct conflict with the principle of equal opportunities that are held as an inviable standard within the borders of democratic countries.

Immigration polices that enable governments to selectively grant freedom of movement rights to targeted individuals result in a net economic gain for the host country and a net loss for the donor country, often exacerbating the environment and the global inequality of standards of living that provided the motivation for the individual to migrate in the first place. An example of this competition for the skilled is active recruitment of health workers by first world countries from the third world. Examples of the underprivilaged trying to escape their environment to make a better life are numerous and well documented in the media as illegal immigration issues on the borders of europe, USA, and in most other countries.

Barriers to immigration are not only legal, natural barriers to immigration are also very powerful. Immigrants when leaving their country also leave everything familiar, their family, friends, support network, and culture. They also need to liquidate their assets often at a large cost and incur the expense of moving. When they arrive in a new country this is often with many uncertainties including finding work, where to live, new laws, new cultural norms, language or accent issues, possible racism and other exclusionary behaviour towards them and their family. These forces are very powerful and counteract the assertion that, given free unimpeded immigration, populations would move en masse to other areas creating huge population bubbles and their associated strain on infrastructure and services.

See also

General immigration topics

Mexican immigration

Legal instruments

References

External links

See individual "Immigration to..." articles for country-specific links.

 

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