The potential dangers of immigration ‘point systems’: Lessons from the history of Danish American communities in the US

a column by Nina Boberg-Fazlic and Paul Sharp for VOX: CEPR’s Policy Portal

Can immigration point systems identify desirable immigrants?

This column investigates the lessons of 19th-century migration from then-poor Denmark to the US. By 1890, Denmark had developed into a world-leading dairy producer. It finds that areas in the US with many Danes before the transformation of Danish agriculture benefited from significant knowledge transfers thereafter, and specialised in high-tech dairying. This provides a cautionary tale for those arguing that desirable migrants can be identified ex ante.

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