Migration.....an Obvious Benefit

When discussing international migration, a distressingly large portion of the debate analyzes the effects of higher immigration on domestic citizens alone and seeks to restrict immigration to protect a national culture or existing economic interests. The obvious, but under-emphasized, reality is that immigration is a significant gain for most people who move to a new country.

Michael Clemens, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development in Washington, quantified these gains in his paper, Economics and Emigration: Trillion-Dollar Bills on the Sidewalk?. He found that unrestricted immigration could create tens of trillions of dollars in economic value, as captured by the migrants themselves in the form of higher wages in their new countries and by those who hire the migrants or consume the products of their labor.