The economics of citizenship

Don J. DeVoretz December 2005 RIIM Research on Immigration and Integration in the Metropolis The Vancouver Centre is funded by grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Citizenship & Immigration Canada, Simon Fraser University, the University of British Columbia and the University of Victoria. [...] Prior to the advent of the triangular model, the extant economic literature concentrated on only one aspect of the immigrant citizenship question that pertained to the economic impact. [...] To wit, the choice of ascending to citizenship may not be independent from the economic impact of citizenship acquisition in the labour market and vice-versa. [...] Some Stylized Facts Barry Chiswick (1978) in his seminal work on immigrant earnings posited the concept of the catch- up in the race to close the earnings gap between immigrants and native-born in the United States. [...] Employment Rate 14 Both the acquisition of subsidized human capital and the prospects of receiving a free public good (a passport) will increase the probability that this immigrant will ascend to citizenship, if the expected earnings stream in the host country – net of costs – exceeds the option of returning home.