The developmental migration state

Abstract

ABSTRACT What drives some states to liberalise immigration policies while others resist doing so? Why do states expand rights for some migrants and not for others? Building on Hollifield’s [(2004). ‘The Emerging Migration State’. International Migration Review 38 (3): 885–912] theory of the migration state, this article explores how the process of political economic development in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan shaped their citizenship regimes and, later, their immigration policies. We argue that the specific patterns of migration management in East Asian democracies – characterised by partially open borders and discrete institutionalised rights for specific subcategories of migrants – is not a reflection of an incomplete liberal migration state but rather, migration control by (formerly or contemporary) developmental states that have historically prioritised economic development, social stability, and national security over democracy and equality. Based on an analysis of archival, policy, and legal documents collected in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan from 2010 to 2019, this article analyzes the emergence of the ‘developmental migration state’ that correlates migrants’ access to rights and permanent settlement with their utility towards national developmental goals.