Skilled migrants typically contribute to the welfare state more than they draw in benefits from it. The opposite holds … for unskilled migrants. This suggests that a host country is likely to boost (respectively, curtail) its welfare system …

composition of immigrants under free migration is negative. The reason is that welfare state benefits attract unskilled migrants … generosity (and taxes) of the welfare state on the skill composition of migrants is positive if migration is controlled by policy …. Being net contributors to the welfare state, skilled migrants can help finance a more generous welfare-state system; thus …

in Canada. We empirically assess these trends by measuring the strength of the 'push' from weak labor markets versus the … the growth path observed in Canada …