Global Labour Markets, Return and Onward Migration

Recent immigration appears to be characterized by frequent return and onward migration. This has important consequences for the contribution of immigrants to the economy of the host country. Lack of longitudinal data has prevented much analysis of whether recent international migration is more like internal migration and not a once-for-all move with a possible return should the move prove to have been a mistake. A newly available longitudinal data set covering all immigrants to Canada since 1980 provides the opportunity to address the issues raised by the new migration. The results show that a large fraction of male immigrants who are working age, especially among skilled workers and entrepreneurs, are highly internationally mobile.