Immigration
Immigration Policies by Country 2025
Country | Policy on Immigration↓ | Poliicy on Highly Skilled Workers | Policy on Emigration | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | China | Raise | Raise | No |
 | Brazil | Raise | Raise | |
 | Russia | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | Germany | Raise | Raise | No |
 | Thailand | Raise | Raise | Raise |
 | South Korea | Raise | Raise | No |
 | Ukraine | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | Poland | Raise | Raise | |
 | Kazakhstan | Raise | Raise | Maintain |
 | Romania | Raise | Raise | Maintain |
 | Rwanda | Raise | Raise | Maintain |
 | Sweden | Raise | Raise | |
 | Portugal | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | Hungary | Raise | Raise | No |
 | Israel | Raise | Maintain | Lower |
 | Austria | Raise | Raise | |
 | Belarus | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | Bulgaria | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | Finland | Raise | Raise | |
 | Uruguay | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | Lithuania | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | Gabon | Raise | Raise | Lower |
 | San Marino | Raise | No | No |
 | Niue | Raise | Lower | |
 | Morocco | No official policy | Maintain | |
 | Madagascar | No official policy | Maintain | No |
 | Senegal | No official policy | No official | |
 | Burundi | No official policy | Raise | No |
 | Czechia | No official policy | No official | |
 | Denmark | No official policy | Raise | |
 | Palestine | No official policy | Lower | |
 | Grenada | No official policy | No official | |
 | Ethiopia | No intervention | Raise | Maintain |
 | Tanzania | No intervention | No | |
 | Uganda | No intervention | No | No |
 | Burkina Faso | No intervention | No | Lower |
 | Somalia | No intervention | No | |
 | Guatemala | No intervention | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Zimbabwe | No intervention | Raise | Lower |
 | Guinea | No intervention | No | No |
 | Benin | No intervention | No | No |
 | Tunisia | No intervention | No | Raise |
 | Togo | No intervention | No | No |
 | Sierra Leone | No intervention | No | No |
 | El Salvador | No intervention | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Central African Republic | No intervention | No | |
 | Eritrea | No intervention | Raise | Lower |
 | Lesotho | No intervention | No | Lower |
 | Guinea-Bissau | No intervention | No | Lower |
 | Comoros | No intervention | No | |
 | India | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | United States | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Indonesia | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Nigeria | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Bangladesh | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Mexico | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Japan | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Philippines | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | DR Congo | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Vietnam | Maintain | Raise | Raise |
 | Turkey | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | South Africa | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Italy | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Myanmar | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Colombia | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Sudan | Maintain | Lower | |
 | Spain | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Algeria | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Iraq | Maintain | No official | Lower |
 | Argentina | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Afghanistan | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Canada | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Angola | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Uzbekistan | Maintain | Maintain | Raise |
 | Mozambique | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Peru | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Ivory Coast | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Cameroon | Maintain | No official | Lower |
 | Nepal | Maintain | Maintain | Raise |
 | Venezuela | Maintain | Maintain | |
 | Niger | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Australia | Maintain | Maintain | |
 | North Korea | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Syria | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Mali | Maintain | No | Lower |
 | Sri Lanka | Maintain | Maintain | Raise |
 | Zambia | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Chad | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Chile | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Netherlands | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Cambodia | Maintain | Maintain | Raise |
 | Bolivia | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Haiti | Maintain | Lower | |
 | Belgium | Maintain | Maintain | |
 | Dominican Republic | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | United Arab Emirates | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Honduras | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Cuba | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Tajikistan | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Papua New Guinea | Maintain | Raise | Raise |
 | Azerbaijan | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Libya | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Kyrgyzstan | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Paraguay | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Nicaragua | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Serbia | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Republic of the Congo | Maintain | Maintain | |
 | Singapore | Maintain | Lower | No |
 | Lebanon | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Liberia | Maintain | No | |
 | Norway | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Slovakia | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Mauritania | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Ireland | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | New Zealand | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Costa Rica | Maintain | Maintain | |
 | Panama | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Croatia | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Georgia | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Mongolia | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Namibia | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Moldova | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Armenia | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Jamaica | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Albania | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Botswana | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Slovenia | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Equatorial Guinea | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Latvia | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Trinidad and Tobago | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Timor-Leste | Maintain | Maintain | Raise |
 | Cyprus | Maintain | Lower | Maintain |
 | Estonia | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Mauritius | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Fiji | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Solomon Islands | Maintain | Raise | Raise |
 | Guyana | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Bhutan | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Luxembourg | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Suriname | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Montenegro | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Malta | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Maldives | Maintain | Raise | Maintain |
 | Brunei | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Bahamas | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Iceland | Maintain | Raise | No |
 | Vanuatu | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Samoa | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Saint Lucia | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Kiribati | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Micronesia | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Tonga | Maintain | Raise | Raise |
 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Antigua and Barbuda | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Andorra | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Dominica | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Liechtenstein | Maintain | Maintain | No |
 | Monaco | Maintain | Maintain | |
 | Marshall Islands | Maintain | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Palau | Maintain | Maintain | Lower |
 | Cook Islands | Maintain | Raise | Lower |
 | Nauru | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Tuvalu | Maintain | Raise | |
 | Pakistan | Lower | Maintain | Raise |
 | Egypt | Lower | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Iran | Lower | Maintain | Lower |
 | United Kingdom | Lower | Lower | No |
 | France | Lower | Raise | No |
 | Kenya | Lower | Maintain | Lower |
 | Yemen | Lower | Maintain | Raise |
 | Malaysia | Lower | Raise | Lower |
 | Ghana | Lower | No | Lower |
 | Saudi Arabia | Lower | Maintain | Lower |
 | Malawi | Lower | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Ecuador | Lower | No | Lower |
 | Jordan | Lower | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Greece | Lower | Lower | |
 | Switzerland | Lower | Maintain | |
 | Turkmenistan | Lower | Lower | |
 | Oman | Lower | Lower | |
 | Kuwait | Lower | Raise | No |
 | Qatar | Lower | Raise | No |
 | Gambia | Lower | Lower | Lower |
 | Bahrain | Lower | Lower | No |
 | Djibouti | Lower | Maintain | No |
 | Belize | Lower | Maintain | Maintain |
 | Barbados | Lower | Raise | Lower |
 | Seychelles | Lower | Maintain | Lower |
- Immigration and Emigration Policies - Indicate the government’s policiesy to influence the level of documented immigration into (and out of) the country. Response categories for this variable are: Raise, Maintain, Lower, No intervention, and No official policy.
- Policy Rationale - Indicates the government’s underlying reasons for the current immigration policy. Response categories for this variable are: 1. To counter long-term population decline, 2. To address population aging (which shrinks the available work force), 3. To meet labor demands in certain sectors of the economy, and 4. To safeguard employment opportunities for nationals.
- Measures on Integration - Indicates whether the government has adopted specific policies or programmes aimed at integrating immigrants into the host society. Response categories for this variable are: 1. Language skills training, 2. Transfer of professional credentials, 3. Protection against discrimination, and 4 None of these.
- Measures on Irregular Immigration - Indicates whether the government has adopted specific policy measures to address the issue of irregular immigration. Response categories for this variable are: 1. Penalties for employers of migrants in an irregular situation, 2. Fines, detention or deportation of migrants in an irregular situation, and 3. Regularization of legal status under defined schemes or conditions.
- Measures to Attract Diaspora Investment - Indicates specific policy measures that the Government has adopted to encourage or facilitate investment in the country by its diaspora. Response categories for this variable are: 1. Reduced costs of transferring remittances, 2. Tax exceptions or breaks, and 3. Preferential treatment in providing credit or allotment of licences.
- Policy to Encourage the Return of Citizens - Indicates whether the government has adopted any policies or programmes to encourage the return of its citizens living abroad.
All around the world, immigration policies are unique from one country to the next. Each country has its own immigration policies that help protect its national interests. Some countries are much easier to immigrate to than others.
Which Countries Have the Strictest Immigration Policy?
The strictest immigration policies in the world are policies for Vatican City, China and Japan.
Vatican City Immigration Policy
To immigrate to Vatican City, you must be:
-
A Catholic Cardinal who is already living in Rome or Vatican City, or
-
A diplomat of the Holy See, or
-
A person whose job requires them to live in Vatican City
Some people are also able to become citizens by applying directly to the church administration, however, most people are not eligible for this method. To gain citizenship this way, you are required to be granted special permission to live in Vatican City, or you must be the child or spouse of someone who is a current resident.
China Immigration Policy
China will only allow a foreign-born person to become a citizen of China if they permanently live in China, have relatives who are citizens of China, or if they have another reason to become a Chinese citizen. Very few people are able to qualify for citizenship given these requirements.
Japan Immigration Policy
Anyone who wants to become a citizen of Japan must renounce their citizenship from other countries, live in Japan for five years, and undergo a tough interview and review process. Becoming a citizen of Japan can take years.
Other Countries With Strict Immigration Policies
While there are many countries that have strict immigration policies, below are some other strict immigration policies of note.
Liechtensteinn
This country issues residential permits via a lottery system. Anyone who would like to become a citizen must stay in the country for 30 years and must have permanent residents for five years before applying for citizenship. There is preference given to Swiss citizens. Anyone who becomes a citizen of Liechtensteinn must renounce their citizenship of other countries.
Bhutan
Bhutan only grants citizenship to people who are born of two Bhutanese citizens. If only one parent is Bhutanese, then the person must wait 15 years before becoming eligible for Bhutanese citizenship. People who do not have Bhutanese parents must live in Bhutan for 20 years before applying for citizenship. Government employees need only wait 15 years.
