Intra-EU migration: Shedding light on drivers, corridors and the relative importance of migrant characteristics
Miriam Mack, Sarah Roeder, Katrin Marchand & Melissa Siegel
#2020-042
Much of the existing literature on intra-EU mobility focuses on labour
migration from the new East-ern to the old Member States and neglects
the social and emotional dimensions of mobility and their
interrelatedness with economic drivers. Using a dataset consisting of 98
interviews conducted in four destination countries (Germany, Italy,
Spain and the UK) with intra-EU migrants originating from EU15 countries
(59 individuals) and CEE countries (39 individuals), this paper
contributes to the understanding of the nature of individual mobility
decision-making and the diversity of reasons that drive migration within
the EU. Specifically, it provides an in-depth analysis on how intra-EU
mobility decision-making relates to specific migrant characteristics
such as country of origin, age, skill level and gender and the dynamics
inherent to specific migration corridors. The qualitative data is
analysed in the light of existing theories of mobility and their
relative importance in predicting intra-EU mobility. The results show
that intra-EU migration decision-making is a highly complex process and
is seldom based on one specific driver. Rather, the decision-making
process is, in most cases, based on several interrelated factors beyond
purely economic considerations. This paper contributes to the
understanding of emotional and social considerations in migration
decision-making, which have largely been neglected in existing
literature. Importantly, it also contributes to the understanding of
different intra-EU migration corridors, such as the East-West,
East-South, South-North and West-West corridors, which remain relatively
under-researched, and how these relate to specific migrant
characteristics. Understanding the migration decision-making of
individuals is of pivotal importance for both scholars and specifically
policymakers to attract and retain talent.
JEL Classification Codes: J61, R23, F22, J15, J23, 015
Keywords: High-skilled migration, Migration decision-making, EU
mobility, EU migration corridors