Governments around the world have turned to migration management tools—such as border closures, travel restrictions, and bars on asylum—initially in hopes of keeping COVID-19 from entering their countries, and later as part of a wider suite of mobility restrictions to contain the spread.
These fast-moving policy changes, some likely to be short term, others leaving a permanent mark on immigration systems, are being analyzed by MPI and MPI Europe researchers. All research and analysis they generate on point to the coronavirus pandemic is gathered here. This site will be updated frequently, so please check back.
Crisis within a Crisis: Immigration in the United States in a Time of COVID-19
By Muzaffar Chishti and Sarah Pierce
Coronavirus Is Spreading across Borders, But It Is Not a Migration Problem
By Natalia Banulescu-Bogdan, Meghan Benton and Susan Fratzke
The global COVID-19 pandemic has brought into sharp focus the intersection of U.S. immigration and public health policy, and the unique challenges that immigrants face. This article analyzes the Trump administration's introduction of some of the most stringent immigration restrictions in modern times, the often disparate fallout of the outbreak on immigrant communities, the status of federal immigration agency operations, and more.
Video, Audio, Webinars
Travel bans, border closures, and other migration management tools did not prove effective at blocking COVID-19 from spreading across international borders. Yet as governments have shifted from containment to mitigation with the coronavirus now in community transmission in many countries, these restrictions are a logical part of the policy toolkit in the context of social distancing and restricting all forms of human movement, as this commentary explores.
Moving Beyond Pandemic: Could Curbing Globalization Prevent Future Pandemics?