Global Fields and Migration Regimes: Citizenship by Investment

Area of Science:

• Socioeconomic Geography
• International Relations
• Migration Studies

Background:

• Scholars have studied migration industries and multilevel governance separately.
• Limited research integrates these to understand migration regime development.
• Existing work overlooks the interplay between profit motives and regulatory competition.

Purpose of the Study:

• To integrate insights from migration industries and multilevel governance.
• To explore the intersection of profit struggles and regulatory capital competition.
• To analyze the dynamics of citizenship sales as a case study.

Main Methods:

• Conceptual integration of two research strands.
• Case study analysis focusing on citizenship by investment programs.
• Examination of cooperation and competition between states and firms.
• Analysis of how global powers influence national citizenship policies.

Main Results:

• Cooperation and competition between countries and firms impact program resilience and risks.
• Economic capital influences regulatory capital, affecting citizenship policies.
• Global powers can shape citizenship policies, impacting program growth and profitability.
• Uneven global playing fields structure migration regimes.

Conclusions:

• Migration regimes are produced through the interaction of economic and regulatory capital.
• The study highlights the limits of state sovereignty in a globalized context.
• Understanding these dynamics is crucial for analyzing contemporary migration patterns.