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. 2013 Dec;32(6):10.1007/s11113-013-9300-y.
doi: 10.1007/s11113-013-9300-y.

Family Sponsorship and Late-Age Immigration in Aging America: Revised and Expanded Estimates of Chained Migration

Stacie Carr  1 , Marta Tienda  2
Affiliations

Family Sponsorship and Late-Age Immigration in Aging America: Revised and Expanded Estimates of Chained Migration

Stacie Carr et al. Popul Res Policy Rev. 2013 Dec.

Abstract

We use the Immigrants Admitted to the United States (micro-data) supplemented with special tabulations from the Department of Homeland Security to examine how family reunification impacts the age composition of new immigrant cohorts since 1980. We develop a family migration multiplier measure for the period 1981 to 2009 that improves on prior studies by including immigrants granted legal status under the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act and relaxing unrealistic assumptions required by synthetic cohort measures. Results show that every 100 initiating immigrants admitted between 1981-85 sponsored an average of 260 family members; the comparable figure for initiating immigrants for the 1996-2000 cohort is 345 family members. Furthermore, the number of family migrants ages 50 and over rose from 44 to 74 per 100 initiating migrants. The discussion considers the health and welfare implications of late-age immigration in a climate of growing fiscal restraint and an aging native population.

Keywords: Chain migration; age at admission; family sponsored immigrants; immigration multiplier.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1. Late-Age Immigrants as Percentage of Admissions by 5-Year Cohort, 1981–2009
Source: Authors’ tabulations from Immigrants Admitted to the United States data file (USDOJ, Immigrants Admitted to the United States, 1981–2000), and Special Tabulations provided by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security 2010.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2. Aggregated Class of Admission by Reunification Migration Phase
Sources: Adapted from Yu 2005, (pp. 48–53). Congressional Budget Office, 2010; Monger, 2010; U.S. Dept. of State, 2009.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3. Source of Initial Immigrant Admissions, 1981–2009, by 5-Year LPR Cohort
Source: Source: Authors’ tabulations from Immigrants Admitted to the United States data file (USDOJ, Immigrants Admitted to the United States, 1981–2000), and Special Tabulations provided by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security 2010. Notes: The 2006–2009 admission cohort represents four rather than five years. Spouses are foreign-born married to native-born U.S. citizens. Government-sponsored initiating immigrants include both IRCA and non-IRCA admissions, with the IRCA component represented by area above the dashed line.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Cohort Matrix: Initiating Immigrant Cohorts, Generation-Lagged Citizen-Sponsored Cohorts, and 5-Year Admission Cohorts
Notes: Annual initiating immigrant cohorts (0E, 0G, 0G′, 0S) appear on the vertical axis; accompanying and later-following LPR dependents (1D, 2D) are temporally aligned with these cohorts. X denotes the corresponding annual cohorts of generation-lagged, citizen-sponsored family immigrants (3C, 3S, 3P, 4F), which appear along the horizontal axis. Gray highlights indicate the five-year admission cohorts in FMM estimates.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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