5 Conclusions and implications

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Evidence from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC) indicates that, during their initial years in Canada, a significant minority of new immigrants send remittances to family or friends abroad. On an annual basis, the average amount sent by remitters is approximately $1,450, accounting for about 6% of total personal income before taxes and for about 3% of total family income before taxes. However, readers are reminded that LSIC collected data on the remittance activities of individuals, rather than of families or households, and hence they may yield conservative estimates.

The magnitude of inter-country and inter-regional differences in remittance behaviours is a salient theme in this study. Descriptive data show that within a single landing cohort, the incidence of remitting among immigrants from different countries ranges from less than 10% to over 60%, while the average annual amounts remitted range from about $500 to almost $3,000. Turning to the factors associated with remitting, financial and family characteristics are consistently significant among immigrants from all world regions. In contrast, other factors, such as sex and education, are associated with remitting among immigrants from some regions but not others. Furthermore, large inter-country and inter-regional differences remain when socioeconomic characteristics and group composition are taken into account. Other factors beyond the scope of our analysis, such as the characteristics of families members 'back home,' the characteristics of the country of origin, and the institutional characteristics within bilateral corridors are likely important factors that further influence remittance activities.

LSIC offers potential for further research on this topic. Remitting has been treated as the dependent variable in our analysis, with our attention focused on 'upstream determinants.' One could also view remitting as an independent variable, with attention focused on 'downstream consequences,' such as the implications for settlement. For example, how many immigrant families have incomes that are just above the before-tax low-income cutoff (LICO), and would fall below the LICO if their remittances were subtracted from their family income? Do the labour market decisions of immigrants who remit differ from those who do not? Perhaps those with obligations to provide financial support to family members abroad have less flexibility in their employment choices than those without such obligations. The longitudinal potential of LSIC could also be further exploited. For example, using a fixed-effects model one could estimate how sensitive remittance activities are to changes in personal income received by individuals over time. Finally, the gender differences in remittance activities of immigrants from the different world regions documented above warrant closer investigation.

LSIC provides timely information on the remittance activities of new immigrants. But while the breadth of perspective it offers across countries of origin is one of its strengths, its focus on a single cohort is certainly a weakness. Indeed, LSIC leaves us unable to answer many important questions:

• To what extent does the incidence of remitting decline as immigrants reside in Canada for longer periods of time, after 5, 10 or 15 years?
• Do immigrants who arrived in Canada during the 1980s or 1990s continue to send money to family members abroad?
• Do the remittance behaviours of temporary residents differ from those of landed immigrants?
• Are there discernable trends in remittance behaviours across landing cohorts?
• Are the experiences of the LSIC cohort comparable to those of other cohorts?
• What are the total annual inflows and outflows of remittances to and from Canada each year?

LSIC was not designed to address such questions and the development of new data sources is necessary if they are to be answered.