Emigration of Immigrants and Measures of Immigrant Assimilation: Evidence from Sweden

Per-Anders Edin, Robert LaLonde and Olof Åslund

No 2000:13, Working Paper Series from Uppsala University, Department of Economics

Abstract: Most previously used measures of immigrant labor market assimilation will be biased if there is non-random emigration of immigrants. We use longitudinal data on immigration to Sweden 1970-1990 to examine the extent and pattern of immigrant emigration and its consequences for measures of assimilation. Large fractions of the immigrants leave the host country shortly after arrival; within five years, more than a quarter of the people studied emigrated. As expected, economic migrants are much more likely to emigrate than political ones. Further, within these two groups, it is the least economically successful who leave. This creates the impression that immigrants’ well-being relative to natives improves with time in Sweden. However, not adjusting for emigration leads to overestimating the rate of economic assimilation, for Nordic and OECD immigrants by about much as 75 percent.90 percent or more.

Keywords: Assimilation; immigration; return migration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F22 J61 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 38 pages
Date: 2000-09-20
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (111)

Published in Swedish Economic Policy Review, 2000, pages 163-204.

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Related works:
Working Paper: Emigration of Immigrants and Measures of Immigrant Assimilation: Evidence from Sweden (2000)
Working Paper: Emigration of Immigrants and Measures of Immigrant Assimilation: Evidence from Sweden (2000)
Working Paper: Emigration of Immigrants and Measures of Immigrant Assimilation: Evidence from Sweden (2000)
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