Take Me Home: Determinants of Return Migration among Later Life Immigrants in Germany

Jenjira Yahirun, University of California, Los Angeles

A frequently overlooked consequence of migration to post-war Europe and North America has been the aging of immigrants themselves. As foreign-born individuals approach later life stages, residential decisions concerning where to live will be important. This project examines the determinants of return migration as foreign-born individuals approach later life in Germany. Return migration in later life engages a different set of conditions than return migration earlier on, including the framing of return migration as a possible retirement strategy. I use longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) to examine fixed as well as time-varying determinants of return migration among later-life immigrants in Germany.