Non-Migration Policies and Mobility Decisions

This paper explores theoretical and empirical research examining the ways in which different policy arenas affect people’s decisions to migrate. We propose an analytical framework to assess various qualities of non-migration policies in a systematic way. We then focus on four diverse policy areas: agricultural policy, transport policy, education policy and social welfare policy, and analyse evidence for their direct impact on migration decisions or their indirect effects as they shape the decision-making context. These policy areas are chosen as examples of different types of policies in terms of their source of impact, level, locus and logic of impact, and – effectively - mechanisms through which they shape decision-making of migrants. Our review is not comprehensive, it rather sets ground for further systematic theoretical and empirical thinking about the role of non-migration policies in migration decision-making.