The Frequency of Migration and Optimal Restriction Policies

Most of the studies on the economic welfare of host countries of international immigration have concluded that immigration is beneficial to the host country. The typical examples of such studies are Berry and Soligo (1969), Rivera-Batiz (1982), Quibria (1989), Wong (1995), and Kondoh (1999); however, it should be noted that these studies consider workers who have the same ability, skill level, and working spirits. In reality, potential immigrants have different levels of ability, skills, and work spirits, and the government of the host country is likely to be selective in granting entry and work permits to foreign workers. Further, developed countries accept only skilled workers. Sometimes, these theoretical analyses failed to consider the major reason why developed countries are reluctant to accept immigrants. In order to minimize the potentially negative externalities associated with the sizeable inflow of foreign workers, it is necessary to consider the effectiveness of qualitative restrictions. When adopted effectively, these policies enable countries not only to gain useful skilled workers for their workforce but also help prevent an influx of “undesirable,” disgruntled immigrants who might bring problems with them.