Does Immigration Impact Institutions?

While the economic benefits of immigration are well documented, little research has focused on the impact of immigration on the institutions of host countries.

Does Immigration Impact Institutions? examines the hypothesis that immigrants, particularly those from Third World countries, tend to undermine the consensus in support of "economic freedom."  Defining economic freedom as a combination of strong private property rights, a stable economy, and minimal government regulation, and considering other factors such as GDP and the extent of immigrant dependence on government benefits, the study finds that immigrants have a small but beneficial effect on economic freedom regardless of the source country or volume of immigration. The study compares data from the Economic Freedom of World (EFW) report against percentages of countries' immigrant populations, provided by the UN's The International Migrant Stock by Destination and Origin. Between 1990 and 2011, the authors found no evidence that immigrants from either poor or authoritarian countries have a negative effect on economic freedom. The report does show, however, a small increase in per capita GDP that correlates with a higher flow of immigrants. (Priscilla Moreno for The ILC Public Education Institute)

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