Immigration

Immigration occurs when individuals move to live in a destination (or host) country where they do not possess citizenship but plan to permanently settle. Individuals who cross national borders to live in the new country are referred to as either migrants or immigrants. From the perspective of the country that they left, they are called emigrants or out-migrants. Immigration is a global phenomenon, and many countries are experiencing unprecedented surges of immigrants. As of 2013, there were about 232 million international immigrants, of which about 19.5 million were refugees who sought protection from persecution, war, and famine in their home country. This entry briefly discusses governmental policies and demographic factors to illustrate the complexities of the immigration process, followed by a discussion on how immigration ...