The Economic Causes and Consequences of Canadian Citizenship - Discussion Paper 1395 - November 2004

Sep 18, 2026

Uploaded by Liam

Immigrants obtain Canadian citizenship at different rates, and the paper explains why these disparities emerge. It examines the economic costs and benefits of citizenship to justify differential ascension rates. Evidence on Canadian earnings shows substantial economic gains from citizenship. Decomposition analysis attributes the gains largely to self-selection, where only the more productive immigrants become citizens.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages40

Reading Time1 h 41 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Citizenship ascension goals and residency requirements

Patterns by source country and variation in ascension rates

Controversies and policy implications

IZA DP No. 1395 The Economic Causes and Consequences of Canadian Citizenship Don J. DeVoretz Sergiy Pivnenko November 2004 D I S C U S S I O N P A P E R S E R I E S Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit Institute for the Study of Labor The Economic Causes and Consequences of Canadian Citizenship Don J. DeVoretz RIIM, Simon Fraser University and IZA Bonn Sergiy Pivnenko RIIM, Simon Fraser University Discussion Paper No. 1395 November 2004 IZA P.O. Box 7240 53072 Bonn Germany Phone: +49-228-3894-0 Fax: +49-228-3894-180 Email: [iza@iza.org](iza@iza.org) Any opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and not those of the institute. Research disseminated by IZA may include views on policy, but the institute itself takes no institutional policy positions. The Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in Bonn is a local and virtual international research center and a place of communication between science, politics and business. IZA is an independent nonprofit company supported by Deutsche Post World Net. The center is associated with the University of Bonn and offers a stimulating research environment through its research networks, research support, and visitors and doctoral programs. IZA engages in (i) original and internationally competitive research in all fields of labor economics, (ii) development of policy concepts, and (iii) dissemination of research results and concepts to the interested public. IZA Discussion Papers often represent preliminary work and are circulated to encourage discussion. Citation of such a paper should account for its provisional character. A revised version may be available directly from the author. IZA Discussion Paper No. 1395 November 2004 ABSTRACT The Economic Causes and Consequences of Canadian Citizenship∗ Immigrants ascend to citizenship at differential rates in Canada. Why is this so? This paper investigates the economic costs and benefits derived from citizenship to rationalize the differential rates of citizenship ascension. Canadian earnings evidence confirms the sizable economic benefits of citizenship. A decomposition analysis attributes this benefit to selfselection, namely only the more productive immigrants become Canadian citizens. JEL Classification: F22, J61, J68 Keywords: immigration, citizenship, Canada Corresponding author: Sergiy Pivnenko Centre of Excellence: Immigration Simon Fraser University 8888 University Drive Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6 Canada Email: [spivnenk@sfu.ca](spivnenk@sfu.ca) ∗ This is a substantially revised version of the Economics of Canadian Citizenship which will appear in the Willy Brandt Series of Working Papers ([www.bit.mah.se/MUEP](www.bit.mah.se/MUEP)) . Introduction The long-term goal of Canadian immigration policy is to insure that the majority of its foreign-born arrivals become citizens. To this end the current Canadian ministry of immigration is charged to perform both immigrant selection and citizenship functions. Moreover, the majority of foreign-born permanent immigrants to Canada are entitled to apply for citizenship after a three-year period of residency. According to the 1996 Census of Canada, 74.6% of Canada’s foreign-born were citizens. In addition the majority of Canada’s post-1986 immigrant flows emanate from China and India, and, after 5 years in residence, these immigrants ascend to citizenship atan annual rate of between 15 to 20% of the resident stock per yeari. The process is nearly complete after the 25th year in residence as the stock of residents from China and India have largely acquired citizenship. Just the opposite picture emerges for immigrants from the traditional source countries of Western Europe and the United States. Here significant immigrant ascension to citizenship only appears after 25 years or more in residence. Rates of ascension vary even amongst immigrants from Western Europe. For example, more than 68% of Polish immigrants to Canada

FAQs

Why do immigrants in Canada ascend to citizenship at differential rates?

The paper investigates economic costs and benefits to explain the differential rates of citizenship ascension, using Canadian evidence to connect economic incentives with observed outcomes.

What economic benefits of citizenship are supported by the evidence?

Canadian earnings evidence confirms sizable economic benefits of citizenship for immigrants who become citizens.

How does the paper explain where these benefits come from?

A decomposition analysis attributes the benefits mainly to self-selection, meaning only more productive immigrants become Canadian citizens.

Sep 18, 2026

Uploaded by Liam