Immigration Controls

Question 1

What is Immigration Policy?

Answer 1

Czaika & Haas
-Immigration policies are enacted to affect the volume (increase, decrease), timing (rate of flow) and composition (demographics) of migration flows

Question 2

What are objectives of Immigration Policy?

Answer 2

• There are various objectives of immigration which can include, halting immigration, restricting inflows, deterring/attracting certain migrants (highly skilled over refugees) and sharing responsibilities

Question 3

Why are states interested in controlling immigration?

Answer 3

Cornelius

-Consequences of migration (Demographic concerns, economic concern, security concern)

Question 4

What are types of controls?

Answer 4

1. external control (in countries of origin) which may include, visas.
2. Border controls (biometric services).
3. Internal controls ( Happens within the territory, access to labour market, healthcare, naturalization etc.)

Question 5

What are determinants of Policy outputs?

Answer 5

-Whether nation states pick a particular method depends on various things including (reception capacity, settlement patterns, public attitudes and strength of interest groups).

Question 6

2 prominent claims of migration

Answer 6

• Hollified et al. have made 2 general claims about policy preferences of states
• 1) Convergence hypothesis – growing similarity between countries in policy instruments
• 2) Gap hypothesis - Distance between the goals and results of national immigration policy is growing wide

Question 7

Policy Making Preferences

Answer 7

(Cornelius)

-Domestic interest groups, political institutions

Question 8

What is the difference between Effect vs. Effectiveness

Answer 8

1) CH
- Effectiveness - producing a decided, desired effect
- Effect - power to bring about result
- Thus it is desired vs actual effect

Question 9

What are Policy Failures

Answer 9

1) Castles

- Policy failure can be said to occur when a policy does not achieve its stated objectives

Question 10

Reasons of Policy Failure

Answer 10

• Castles argues, 3 reasons of policy failures
  1. Factors arising from the social dynamics of the migratory process (migration facilitated by networks, structural dependence on emigration and immigration)
  2. factors linked to globalization and the North-South divide; and
  3. factors arising within political systems

Question 11

What is the migration industry?

Answer 11

CH
- Once migration reaches a critical threshold level, migration networks, employers, and the “migration industry” (recruiters, lawyers, smugglers, and other intermediaries) facilitate the continuing movement of people

Question 12

What is Dual labour market theory?

Answer 12

(Massey)

• IM is caused by a permanent demand for immigrant labour that is inherent to the economic structure of developed nations
• Immigration is not caused by push factors in sending countries, but by pull factors in receiving countries (chronic need for foreign workers)

Question 13

What are Substitution Effects?

Answer 13

Hein De Haas

• Reviews of immigration policies and emigration policies show policies are more effective in determining selection and composition of migration, rather than overall volume and long-term trends of migration
• Immigration restrictions can lead to four main types of substitution effects which can reduce the effect of restrictions on inflows in the particular, targeted category:
  1. Spatial substitution effects may occur through the diversion of migration to countries with less restrictive regulations for similar categories of migrants
  2. Categorical substitution effects may occur to a reorientation towards other legal or illegal channels when entry through one particular channel becomes more difficult
  3. Inter-temporal substitution effects or ‘now or never’ migration may occur if migration surges in the expectation of a future tightening of migration regulations
  4. Reverse flow substitution effects occur when immigration restrictions decrease return migration flows
• These four unintended policy effects must be taken into consideration when measuring effect of policies on migration flows
• Decreases in restrictiveness are likely to have the opposite effect, and restrictive emigration policies can also have substitution effects

Question 14

What is Human Capability?

Answer 14

Hein de has
- refers to ability of human beings to lead lives they have reason to value, and to enhance the substantive choices they have

Intrinsic vs. Instrumental Freedom
- Freedom is central to process of development primarily for its intrinsic, wellbeing-enhancing power, which has to be clearly distinguished from instrumental effectiveness of freedoms of in contributing to economic progress

Positive vs. Negative Freedom

• Negative liberty means the absence of obstacles, barriers or constraints
• Positive liberty is the possibility or the fact of acting in such a way as to take control of one’s life and realize one’s fundamental purpose
• Thus, emigration is likely to occur when people enjoy a maximum of negative freedoms and a moderate level of positive freedoms
• Conventional migration theories disregard importance of agency

Question 15

10. Why aren’t they effective?

Answer 15

• Divergence between ‘stated’ and ‘real’ (at times competing) policy objectives
• Collective action problems
• Int. & domestic institutional constraints
• Strength of push & (structural) pull factors beyond the reach of policy makers (see Thielemann 2012)