economic migrants
Prosperity-seeking relocators
Economic migrants are people who move from one country or region to another seeking better employment or financial opportunities, rather than fleeing war, persecution, or disaster.
The term often appears in political debates to distinguish those pursuing prosperity from refugees seeking safety: The government argued that most arrivals were economic migrants, not asylum seekers.
The label can carry dismissive overtones, implying less legitimate claims to entry or aid.
Spanning national boundaries
- tradeExchange of commodities
- outsourcingThird-party task delegation
- offshoringMoving work overseas
- transnationalCrossing country lines
free trade · labor mobility · brain drain · brain gain · poverty · inequality · development · guest workers
Paid occupation status
- workforceAll available workers
- job seekersPeople looking for employment
- wagesPayment for work
- remittancesPayments sent abroad
work permits · skilled workers · recruitment · employers · labor shortage · seasonal work · domestic workers · construction workers
Relocating abroad permanently
- emigrationLeaving homeland permanently
- diasporaScattered population sharing origins
- refugeesPeople seeking safety elsewhere
- asylum seekersPeople requesting safe haven
population movement · exodus · relocation · resettlement · displacement · naturalization · citizenship · deportation
cross-border
Spanning national boundaries
- tradeExchange of commodities
- outsourcingThird-party task delegation
- offshoringMoving work overseas
transnational · free trade · labor mobility · brain drain · brain gain · poverty · inequality · development · guest workers
employment
Paid occupation status
- workforceAll available workers
- job seekersPeople looking for employment
- wagesPayment for work
remittances · work permits · skilled workers · recruitment · employers · labor shortage · seasonal work · domestic workers · construction workers · agricultural workers
immigration
Relocating abroad permanently
- emigrationLeaving homeland permanently
- diasporaScattered population sharing origins
- refugeesPeople seeking safety elsewhere
asylum seekers · population movement · exodus · relocation · resettlement · displacement · naturalization · citizenship · deportation · undocumented
- immigrationimmigrant, immigrants, visa, refugee, citizenship
- migrationimmigrants, refugees, immigration, emigration, emigrant
- migrantsarctic tern, monarch butterfly, caribou, humpback whale, gray whale
- Asian diasporaVietnamese Americans, Japanese Americans, Filipino Americans, Korean community, ethnic enclaves
- British Emigrationexpat communities, colonial settlers, war brides, transportation, Mayflower
- emigrationemigrant, emigration, emigre, political refugees, expat
economic migrantsrefugees
People seeking safety elsewhere
asylum seekers · political refugees · war refugees · displaced persons · climate refugees
economy, economic, migrate, migration, economical, economics, migratory, economize, migrating