Building fences? sectoral immigration bans in Russian regions

Bibliographic Data

ID6358094
AuthorsSong Ha Joo (0000-0003-4036-0150, Department of Political Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China and Institute of International Studies, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume38
Issue5
Pages410-426
Publication date2022-09-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenuePost-Soviet Affairs (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1060-586X • E-ISSN: 1938-2855
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/1060586x.2021.2013047
OpenAlexW4200480154
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited46

Russian regional governments have shown remarkable variation in prohibiting immigrants from working in specific economic sectors. Why do regions enact immigration bans in some sectors but not in others? Few studies have explored the politics of immigration in authoritarian regimes, and recent sectoral bans in Russia have received scant attention. Based on an analysis of a novel data set on sectoral bans in 83 Russian regions and a case study of Novosibirsk Oblast, this article shows that regional governments tend to enact immigration bans in sectors that do not rely on a foreign workforce. I argue that autocrats impose immigration restrictions as mere grandstanding to appeal to public anti-immigrant sentiment. My findings challenge the existing literature's emphasis on the roles of economic factors, such as economic growth and natural resources, in immigration restrictions, as well as the argument that Russia imposes excessive immigration restrictions

Economic geography · Geography · Immigration · Political science · Law · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Health and Trauma · Migration, Refugees, and Integration

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