Introduction to symposium 'Immigration and the welfare state'

Immigration from a poor to a rich country is potentially advantageous for both immigrants and the inhabitants of the receiving country, and hence for the world. However, the conditions for the potential to be fully realized are strict. Welfare states normally have a refugee orientation that promotes adverse selection of immigrants and institutional arrangements that provide little incentive to work. In such cases the welfare gain is large for the immigrant but inhabitants of the receiving country lose. Aspects of the gains and losses are investigated in the four papers included in this symposium.