Migration Patterns of Serbian and Bosnia and Herzegovina Migrants in Austria: Causes and Consequences
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August 2013 Research Reports | 389 | Isilda Mara, Hermine Vidovic and Michael Landesmann Migration Patterns of Serbian and Bosnia and Herze- govina Migrants in Austria: Causes and Consequences Isilda Mara and Hermine Vidovic are research economists at the Vienna Institute for Interna- Isilda Mara, Hermine Vidovic tional Economic Studies (wiiw). Michael Landes- and Michael Landesmann mann is wiiw Research Director and Professor of Economics at Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Migration Patterns of Austria. The survey analysed in this study was con- ducted by the Austrian Gallup Institute. Serbian and Bosnia and Herzegovina Migrants in Research for this paper was financed by the Jubilee Fund of the Oesterreichische Nationalbank (Project Austria: Causes and Con- No. 14117). sequences Contents Abstract..................................................................................................................................... i Executive summary ................................................................................................................. ii 1. Introduction and motivation of research .......................................................................... 1 2. Background information ................................................................................................... 3 3. Demographic and economic characteristics of Serbian migrants versus other groups of migrants in Austria .................................................................................. 6 4. New insights from the recent survey on Serbian and BiH migrants in Austria ............. 12 4.1 Survey data and methodology ............................................................................. 12 4.2 The design of the questionnaire .......................................................................... 14 4.3 Socio-demographic characteristics of Serbian and BiH migrants in Austria ....... 14 4.4 Migration patterns ................................................................................................ 17 4.5 Education level and human capital formation in the destination country ............ 21 4.6 Employment and occupation in the destination country ...................................... 24 4.7 Job and qualification relationship ......................................................................... 28 4.8 Income and remittances....................................................................................... 29 4.9 Social access and integration issues, formal and informal ................................. 32 5. Return migration ............................................................................................................ 36 5.1 The profile of permanent migrants versus temporary migrants .......................... 36 5.2 Migration purposes and outcomes: permanent versus temporary migrants ...... 38 5.3 Labour market performance: permanent versus temporary migrants ................ 42 6. Empirical analysis of permanent versus temporary migration and labour market mismatch ................................................................................................ 49 6.1 Methodology ......................................................................................................... 50 6.2 Empirical specifications ........................................................................................ 52 7. Estimation results ........................................................................................................... 55 8. Main findings and conclusion ........................................................................................ 61 References ............................................................................................................................ 64 Annex A1 ............................................................................................................................... 66 Annex A2 ............................................................................................................................... 83 Annex A3 ............................................................................................................................... 89 List of Tables and Figures Table 1 Social and economic characteristics: BiH migrants, and Serbian migrants before and after visa liberalisation ..................................................................................... 15 Table 2 Migration plans, causes and outcomes of the migration experience: BiH migrants, and Serbian migrants before and after visa liberalisation ......................... 17 Table 3 Education, qualification and human capital formation abroad .......................................... 23 Table 4 Employment features and occupation before and during migration ................................. 24 Table 5 Job and qualification relationship ....................................................................................... 29 Table 6 Income, remittances ........................................................................................................... 30 Table 7 Social integration aspects .................................................................................................. 33 Table 8 Social integration aspects II ............................................................................................... 35 Table 9 Basic characteristics of potential permanent stayers versus potential return migrants .................................................................................................... 36 Table 10 Causes and outcomes of the migration decision: permanent versus returnees .............. 39 Table 11 Human capital formation in the destination country, potential permanent stayers versus returnees .................................................................. 43 Table 12 Occupational skill level, potential permanent stayers versus returnees ........................... 46 Table 13 ISCO-88 major groups and skill level ................................................................................ 47 Table 14 ISCED – education skill level ............................................................................................. 82 Table 15 Estimation results by education ISCED – occupation skill ISCO-88 matching ................ 83 Table 16 Estimation results by education ISCED – occupation skill ISCO-88 matching, permanent stayers versus returnees ................................................................................ 84 Table 17 Estimation results – seemingly unrelated bivariate probit regression, education-occupational skill matching, migration plans .................................................... 85 Table 18 Estimation results, seemingly unrelated regression, self assessment of occupational matching, migration plans ........................................................................ 87 Figure 1 Natives and migrants by age group, 2008 .......................................................................... 6 Figure 2 Natives and migrants by education level, 2008................................................................... 7 Figure 3 Employment status, Serbian migrants versus natives and other groups of migrants, 2008 ..................................................................................... 8 Figure 4 Employment status, Serbian migrants versus natives and other group of migrants, 2011 ...................................................................................... 9 Figure 5 Occupation of Serbian migrants versus other groups of migrants, 2011 ......................... 10 Figure 6 Working sector of Serbian migrants versus other groups of migrants, 2011 ................... 11 Figure 7 Employment status of potential permanent stayers versus potential returnees .............. 38 Figure 8 Shifts in occupational skills level before and after migration, potential returnees ............ 48 Figure 9 Shifts in occupational skills level before and after migration, potential permanent stayers.............................................................................................................. 48 Abstract The study provides new empirical evidence about migration patterns of immigrants from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in Austria before and after the free visa regime implemented from January 2010 and January 2011 respectively for the two groups of migrants. In this framework a new survey was conducted and about 1000 migrants from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) currently residing in Austria were interviewed. Apart from the collection of standard demographic and socio- economic characteristics, the survey included specific immigration-related questions. The evidence collected through the survey allowed to examine migration intentions, distinguishing between tempo- rary and permanent migration plans, human capital formation in the destination country and labour market experience of different groups of migrants. The results of the survey suggest that the prefer- ence for permanent migration is predominant particularly among BiH and the earlier group of Ser- bian migrants who moved to Austria before visa liberalisation. Serbian migrants who moved to Aus- tria after visa liberalisation show a lesser preference for permanent migration. Serbian migrants and BiH migrants who moved to Austria before visa liberalisation were mainly driven by economic mo- tives, such as taking up a job offer or looking for better working/earning opportunities. Those who moved during the free