International migration: definitions and current practices

1
International migration definitions and current
practices

• Enrico Bisogno
• UN Economic Commission for Europe
• Statistical Division

2
Outline of the presentation

• Migration flows ? definitions and approaches
• Migration stocks ? definitions, approaches, some
  data and a proposal

3
A first simple question

• Who is a migrant?
• Somebody who moves.

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Three possible criteria

• Individual characteristics
• Purpose of stay
• Duration of stay

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1) Individual characteristics

• Foreigners
• Diplomats
• Military
• Foreign-born
• etc

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2) Purpose of stay

• Labour
• Asylum
• Family reunification
• Visitors/tourists
• etc.

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3) Duration of stay

• 3 months
• 6 months
• 1 year
• etc.

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A combined approach

• A migrant is a person changing his/her place of
  usual residence

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Place of usual residence

• On-going discussion
• Objective approach
• Subjective approach

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Demographic perspective

• Migrants included in the population balance
• P t1 Pt B - D I - E

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Demographic perspective

• An immigrant is counted when he/she enters the
  population
• An emigrant is cancelled when he/she exits from
  the population

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1998 UN Recommendations

• An additional requirement
• 1 year or more of residence

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Two types of migrants (1998 UN Rec.)

• Long-term migrants
• (12 months and more)
• Short-term migrants
• (3 to 12 months)

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Implications

• Statistical system
• (definitions and sources)
• Policy perspective

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How to deal with traditional typologies?

• Asylum seekers
• Irregular migrants
• Returning migrants
• Returning nationals
• etc.

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Some current issues on flows

• No emigration data
• Differences in data availability between
  nationals and foreigners
• Different requirements in terms of intended
  duration of stay

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A second simple question

• Who are the migrants
• living in your country?

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1998 UN Recommendations

• Two subpopulations of interest

Foreigners
Foreign-born
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Some definitions

• Foreigners
• Persons living in the country without the
  citizenship of that country

• Foreign-born
• Persons living in the country but born in another
  country

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Some practices
Criteria used in 18 countries of Eastern Europe
and CIS
Citizenship 14
Place of birth 7
Ethnic group 2
Other 4
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Some current practices

• Canada
• France
• United States

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Some current practices

• Germany
• Sweden
• Switzerland

23
Some current practices

• Netherlands

• Netherlands

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Some current practices

• United Kingdom

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Who has more immigrants?
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Country of birth
PROS
PROS
CONS

• Evidence of migration
• Unique
• Does not change
• Objective

• Some Nationals can be included
• Changes of borders
• 2nd generation excluded
• Not policy relevant

27
Citizenship
CONS
PROS

• Unstable
• National regulations
• Not unique

• Legally relevant
• Objective
• Easily detectable
• Many statistical sources

28
Ethnic group
CONS
PROS

• Directly addressing social dimension
• Identify social groups also in the long run

• Subjective
• Political sensitive
• Difficult to detect

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3 different options on the border

• Geographical (place of birth)
• Legal (citizenship)
• Social (ethnic group)

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2000 Census Round some interesting indications
in ECE region

• Country of birth 44 countries
• Country of citizenship 42 countries
• Ethnic group 27 Countries

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2000 Census Round some interesting indications
in ECE region

• 29 Countries asked additional questions on
  birth and/or citizenship
• Multiple citizenship
• Citizenship at birth/by naturalization
• Country of birth of parents

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The various groups
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A possible classification of total population
Parents' place of birth
Place of birth
Citizenship
parent country or abroad
Nationals (at birth)
parent country
Natives
Nationals (by naturalization)
1st generation immigrants
abroad
abroad
Foreigners
Nationals (at birth or by naturalization)
2nd generation immigrants
parent country
abroad
Foreigners
34
Immigrant background advantages

• Comprehensive framework
• Stable
• Objective
• Analytical capacity

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Comparisons (1)

• Imm-background vs. national definitions

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Comparisons (2)

• Imm-background vs. foreigners

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Comparisons (3)

• of foreigners in imm.background

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Some conclusions (1)

• Flows

Stocks
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Some conclusions (2)

• Flows

Stocks
40
Some conclusions (3)
Stocks

• Flows