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The effectiveness of migration policy remains a highly contested issue in the media, politics and academia alike. This new IMI working paper addresses how immigration policies – specifically visa requirements – affect migration.

The authors, IMI Co-Director Hein de Haas and Senior Researcher Mathias Czaika, use two new databases compiled as part of the DEMIG (Determinants of International Migration) project to provide evidence that:

  • Visas reduce immigration and return migration
  • Visas interrupt circulation of migrants and push them into permanent settlement
  • Visas make migration less responsive to economic opportunities in origin and destination countries

Download WP-89-2014: The Effect of Visa Policies on International Migration Dynamics