Mobility and Citizenship in the Shadow of the Euro Crisis: Explaining New Trends in Immigration and Naturalization across Europe

Graeber, John (2015) Mobility and Citizenship in the Shadow of the Euro Crisis: Explaining New Trends in Immigration and Naturalization across Europe. [Conference Proceedings] (Submitted)

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Abstract

Austerity, slow growth, rising unemployment have had worrying effects on the countries of the European Union in the aftermath of the Euro crisis. Fears of the Eurozone’s demise, although somewhat abated for the moment, continue to bring political and economic uncertainty to citizens and governments across the continent. One relatively unexplored consequence of the Euro crisis and the uncertainty it has engendered has been the new changes in mobility and citizenship acquisition trends within the EU. During periods of economic crisis, immigrants often find themselves pushed across borders by slow growth and high unemployment at home in search of better economic opportunities that pull them abroad. During the Euro crisis, while governments have been restricting flows of third-­‐country nationals within Europe in general, many Europeans have taken advantage mobility rights within the Schengen area and have gone in search of better opportunities elsewhere in the EU. For many, the economic benefits of mobility are alluring. However, new evidence suggests that the Euro crisis is increasing the economic benefits of citizenship acquisition as well, prompting new trends in naturalization across a growing number of countries. How has the crisis affected immigration and naturalization trends across Europe in its aftermath?

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