How to get migration right

• Migrants constitute approximately 3.5% of the global population, with only 10% classified as refugees while the vast majority are economic migrants.
• Economic modeling suggests that allowing unrestricted labor mobility could roughly double the world's GDP.
• Public discourse on migration is polarized between fear-mongering narratives characterizing migrants as threats and moralizing critiques labeling opponents as xenophobic.

Case Study: Australia

• Australia holds the highest migrant share of the population among major OECD nations, with nearly 33% of residents born abroad, roughly double the United States' rate.
• Since the 1970s, Australia's population has doubled while its economy has grown 22-fold, a period marked by 28 consecutive years without a recession.
• The Australian migration system is described as colorblind, having shifted away from the pre-1970s "White Australia Policy" to facilitate increased intake from China and India.
• In the 12 months leading to June 2018, Australia issued over 160,000 permanent work visas.

Policy Mechanics and Systems

• Australia utilizes a points-based system that awards points for qualifications, age, English proficiency, and work experience; the highest scorers are invited to apply for permanent residency.
• Unlike the US, which relies heavily on family reunification and faces rigid caps and backlogs, Australia's system allows for skilled independent visas that do not require a pre-existing job offer.
• Critics of the Australian model note that the government occasionally misidentifies industry needs, leading to instances where visa holders struggle to find immediate employment.
• Most migrants in Australia secure employment within 18 months of arrival.

Comparative Context: United States

• US immigration rules are characterized as more restrictive yet less selective than Australia's, with a large portion of permanent residents admitted via family ties.
• The US system suffers from significant backlogs due to rigid caps, forcing some visa allocations to be handled via lottery systems.
• Geographic proximity to Latin America creates a unique challenge for the US regarding illegal border crossings, a risk absent for island nations like Australia.
• Australia's status as an island allows for strict border control via the Coast Guard, enabling the government to be highly selective while maintaining public generosity toward immigrants.

Economic and Social Challenges

• A significant portion of the electorate in Australia and globally expresses apprehension regarding migration due to perceived threats to personal lifestyles.
• Nativist arguments frequently claim that immigrants depress local wages or consume more in welfare than they contribute, though these assertions are generally considered false by experts.
• Rapid migration can lead to uncomfortable neighborhood changes as migrants cluster, fueling cultural objections regarding community disruption and assimilation.

Proposed Policy Solutions

• Economists suggest implementing a "migrant tax" specifically earmarked for voter-preferred services like pensions or public health to demonstrate that migrants contribute more than they take.
• Alternative approaches include temporarily or permanently restricting migrants' access to the welfare state, a strategy currently employed in Britain and the Gulf countries.
• Successful migration policy requires demonstrating to voters that the government controls the intake of entrants and that migrants provide a net economic benefit.
• Australia's success demonstrates that a country can maintain openness levels twice that of the US without social collapse, achieving decades of prosperity and stability.