Family migration in Europe: policies vs. reality.

Family-related migration has become one of the main, if not – as in some countries – virtually the only legal means for people to gain admission. Yet, current political and public debates increasingly see the ‘migrant family’ as an obstacle to integration, as a site characterised by patriarchal relationships, illiberal practices and traditions such as arranged and forced marriages. As a result, family-related modes of migration are more and more becoming subject to restrictions.
This policy brief draws on findings from the comparative research project ‘Civic Stratification, Gender and Family Migration Policies in Europe’, which took place between July 2006 and September 2008. Conducted in Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom, the study investigated family migration policies from two perspectives: a top-down approach examining the regulation of family migration; and a bottom-up approach, focusing on the experiences of migrants and others involved in family migration. This brief addresses fundamental tensions between these two dimensions. It maintains that the assumptions underlying state policies as well as public debates on family-related migration do not do justice to the reality – much less, the complexity – of family migration. Little attention is paid to the consequences policies have on the persons affected by them. Nor is enough made of whether policies and measures actually attain their objectives. Furthermore, current policy regulations seem to discriminate against third-country nationals and female immigrants.

Imiscoe Policy Brief no 16