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Remittances by recent immigrants

  • By René Houle and Grant Schellenberg

Highlights

  • Within 6 to 24 months of landing, 23% of immigrants sent remittances to their home country, while 29% did so 25 to 48 months after landing.

  • The incidence of sending money varied considerably by country of origin. Some 60% of immigrants from the Philippines and Haiti sent remittances 25 to 48 months after landing. About 40% to 50% of immigrants from Jamaica, Nigeria, Romania, Guyana and Ukraine sent money, but less than 10% of immigrants from France, the United Kingdom and South Korea did so.

  • Of the immigrants who remitted 25 to 48 months after landing, those from 11 of 24 countries sent an average amount of between $1,700 and $2,200, while immigrants from 7 other countries sent between $2,700 and $3,700.

  • The incidence of remitting was highest among those from countries with lower GDP per capita. During the 25 to 48 months after landing, around 36% of immigrants from countries with per capita GDP of less than $4,000 sent money home, compared with only 11% from countries with per capita GDP of $15,000 or more.

  • Financial capacity and family obligations are correlated with the likelihood of sending remittances. Immigrants who had family incomes of $70,000 or more were more than three times as likely to send money home as those with family incomes of less than $10,000. Immigrants with three or more children at home were far less likely to send money abroad than those with no children.

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