Leaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies

Debates on migration policies are strongly focused on immigration control, revealing a general receiving-country bias in migration research. To fill this gap, this paper reviews the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies. Only a declining number of strong, authoritarian states with clo...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: de Haas, H, Vezzoli, S
Format: Working paper
Published: International Migration Institute 2011
_version_ 1826276384115261440
author de Haas, H
Vezzoli, S
author_facet de Haas, H
Vezzoli, S
author_sort de Haas, H
collection OXFORD
description Debates on migration policies are strongly focused on immigration control, revealing a general receiving-country bias in migration research. To fill this gap, this paper reviews the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies. Only a declining number of strong, authoritarian states with closed economies are willing and capable of imposing blanket exit restrictions. Paradoxically, while an increasing number of, particularly developing, countries aspire to regulate emigration, their capability to do so is fundamentally and increasingly limited by legal, economic and political constraints. The attitude of states is often intrinsically ambiguous, as they face a complex trade-off between the perceived economic and political costs and benefits of emigration, in which who leaves greatly matters. This motivates states to adopt more subtle policies to encourage or discourage migration of particular skill, gender, age, regional or ethnic groups. Since state policies simultaneously constrain and enable migration of different groups to different destinations, states can play a significant role in structuring emigration through influencing the (initial) composition and spatial patterns of emigration. Even 'laissez-faire’ policies require active state agency to create the structural conditions for 'free’ emigration. However, the effect of emigration policies on overall volume and long-term trends of migration seems limited or even insignificant because of the preponderance of other economic, social and cultural migration determinants. This review reveals the need to improve insights into how states and policies shape migration processes in their interaction with other migration determinants in sending and receiving countries.
first_indexed 2024-03-06T23:13:08Z
format Working paper
id oxford-uuid:6632387d-eb4b-4edc-b212-4a8cfefa80dd
institution University of Oxford
last_indexed 2024-03-06T23:13:08Z
publishDate 2011
publisher International Migration Institute
record_format dspace
spelling oxford-uuid:6632387d-eb4b-4edc-b212-4a8cfefa80dd2022-03-26T18:30:17ZLeaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policiesWorking paperhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_8042uuid:6632387d-eb4b-4edc-b212-4a8cfefa80ddBulk import via SwordSymplectic ElementsInternational Migration Institute2011de Haas, HVezzoli, SDebates on migration policies are strongly focused on immigration control, revealing a general receiving-country bias in migration research. To fill this gap, this paper reviews the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies. Only a declining number of strong, authoritarian states with closed economies are willing and capable of imposing blanket exit restrictions. Paradoxically, while an increasing number of, particularly developing, countries aspire to regulate emigration, their capability to do so is fundamentally and increasingly limited by legal, economic and political constraints. The attitude of states is often intrinsically ambiguous, as they face a complex trade-off between the perceived economic and political costs and benefits of emigration, in which who leaves greatly matters. This motivates states to adopt more subtle policies to encourage or discourage migration of particular skill, gender, age, regional or ethnic groups. Since state policies simultaneously constrain and enable migration of different groups to different destinations, states can play a significant role in structuring emigration through influencing the (initial) composition and spatial patterns of emigration. Even 'laissez-faire’ policies require active state agency to create the structural conditions for 'free’ emigration. However, the effect of emigration policies on overall volume and long-term trends of migration seems limited or even insignificant because of the preponderance of other economic, social and cultural migration determinants. This review reveals the need to improve insights into how states and policies shape migration processes in their interaction with other migration determinants in sending and receiving countries.
spellingShingle de Haas, H
Vezzoli, S
Leaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies
title Leaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies
title_full Leaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies
title_fullStr Leaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies
title_full_unstemmed Leaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies
title_short Leaving matters: the nature, evolution and effects of emigration policies
title_sort leaving matters the nature evolution and effects of emigration policies
work_keys_str_mv AT dehaash leavingmattersthenatureevolutionandeffectsofemigrationpolicies
AT vezzolis leavingmattersthenatureevolutionandeffectsofemigrationpolicies