A migrant levy is a fee imposed on an immigrant by their receiving country. There are pros and cons of having a migrant levy. It generates revenue for the government of the host country. However, it serves as a financial burden to immigrants, which in turn serves as a barrier on immigration. From a

neoliberal economics Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent fa ...

perspective, it also serves as an economic inefficiency (as do any other government interventions into immigration). The

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

describes migrant levies in the following way:

"Some governments of labour-receiving countries earn sizeable revenues through levies on firms employing foreign workers, the burden of which may partly or fully be passed on to the workers themselves. Malaysia and Singapore are examples of countries using selective levies."

References

{{reflist Immigration law