Citizenship Hierarchies: Talent Programs, Commodification Debates and Citizenship at the Nexus of Market and Desirability Logics

Year 2024, Online First, 1 - 19

Özlem Altan , Evren Balta

https://doi.org/10.33458/uidergisi.1543984

Abstract

In recent years, an increasing number of nations have developed and institutionalized immigration programs aimed at attracting high-net-worth individuals, promising expedited residency and, in many cases, a streamlined path to citizenship. These initiatives target individuals expected to contribute economically, whether through immediate financial investments, capital transfers, or desirable professional skills deemed essential for national economic competitiveness. This article critically examines the rise of talent programs against the backdrop of scholarship studying investment-based citizenship schemes. While there is a developed literature studying investment-based citizenship programs and criticizing the imposition of neoliberal rationalities on state-induced meanings and practices of citizenship, there is less attention paid to the implications of these so-called merit-based citizenship programs. We argue that both sets of schemes follow a neoliberal market logic, prioritizing immigrants based on their perceived economic value. We explore how these programs disembed potential immigrants from their social contexts and perpetuate market-based inequalities. Thus, we propose that despite the distinctions often made between talent programs and investment schemes, both contribute to the reinforcement of a global citizenship hierarchy. Drawing on examples from Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries' skilled migration initiatives, we demonstrate how these programs shape discourses of selectivity and “deservingness” for future citizenship. Through a comprehensive analysis of legal frameworks and policy databases, the study highlights the complex interplay between migration policies, commodification of citizenship, and global hierarchies. Ultimately, it calls for a deeper understanding of the continuities and transformations in citizenship logics enabled by the infusion of market dynamics into migration policies.

Keywords

High-skilled migration, selective migration, immigration policy, inequality, market logic

References

• Altan-Olcay, Özlem. 2011. Reframing the Ideal Citizen in Turkey: National Belonging and Economic Success in the Era of Neo-Liberalism. New Perspectives on Turkey 44: 41–72.
• Altan-Olcay, Özlem, and Evren Balta. 2016. Class and Passports: Transnational Strategies of Distinction in Turkey. Sociology 50, 6: 1106–1122.
• Amante, Maria de Fatima, and Irene Rodrigues. 2021. Mobility Regimes and the Crisis: The Changing Face of Chinese Migration due to the Portuguese Golden Visa Policy. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 47, 17: 4081-4099.
• Anderson, Bridget. 2013. Us and Them?: The Dangerous Politics of Immigration Control. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
• Armstrong, Chris. 2018. The Price of Selling Citizenship. In Debating Transformations of National Citizenship, ed. R. Bauböck. New York, Springer International: 25-28.
• Australian Government Home Affairs. 2020. Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (au). Attorney-General’s Department. https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2020L01427/Explanatory Statement/Text
• Australian Government Home Affairs. Subclass 858 Global Talent visa. from https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/global-talent-visa-858#Eligibility (accessed August 21, 2021).
• Balta, Evren, and Özlem Altan-Olcay. 2016. Strategic Citizens of America: Transnational Inequalities and Transformation of Citizenship. Ethnic and Racial Studies 39, 6: 939–957.
• Barbulescu, Roxana. 2018. Global Mobility Corridors for the Ultra-Rich. The Neoliberal Transformation of Citizenship. In Debating Transformations of National Citizenship, ed. R. Bauböck. New York, Springer International: 29-32.
• Bauböck, Rainer. 2019. Genuine Links and Useful Passports: Evaluating Strategic Uses of Citizenship. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 45, 6: 1015-1026.
• Boucher, Anna Katherine. 2020. How ‘Skill’ Definition Affects the Diversity of Skilled Immigration Policies. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 46, 2: 2533-2550.
• Brubaker, Rogers. 1992. Citizenship Struggles in Soviet Successor States. International Migration Review 26, 2: 269–291.
• Business.gov.nl. (n.d.). Procedures for Recognised Sponsors. https://business.gov.nl/coming-to-the-netherlands/information-for-employers/procedures-for-recognised-sponsors/
• Ceccorulli, Michela, and Sonia Lucarelli. 2017. Migration and the EU Global Strategy: Narratives and Dilemmas. The International Spectator 52: 83–102.
• Cerna, Lucie. 2014. The EU Blue Card: Preferences, Policies, and Negotiations between Member States. Migration Studies 2, 1: 73-96.
• Clemens, Michael. 2013. What Do We Know About Skilled Migration and Development? Migration Policy Institute, September 13.
• Cooper, Frederick. 2018. Citizenship, Inequality, and Difference. Princeton, Princeton University.
• Czaika, Mathias (ed.). 2018. High-Skilled Migration: Drivers and Policies. Oxford, Oxford University.
• Czaika, Mathias, and Christopher R. Parsons. 2017. The Gravity of High-Skilled Migration Policies. Demography 54, 2: 603–630.
• de Haas, Hein, Katharina Natter, and Simona Vezzoli. 2015. Conceptualizing and Measuring Migration Policy Change. Comparative Migration Studies 3, 1: 15.
• Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. n.d. Critical Skills Employment Permits. https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/What-We-Do/Workplace-and-Skills/Employment-Permits/Permit-Types/Critical-Skills-Employment-Permit/
• de Jong, Petra, and Helga A. G. de Valk. 2020. Intra-European Migration Decisions and Welfare Systems: The Missing Life Course Link. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 46 9: 1773–1791.
• de Lange, Tesseltje. 2020. A New Narrative for European Migration Policy: Sustainability and the Blue Card Recast. European Law Journal 26, 3-4: 274-282.
• Ellerman, Antje. 2020. Human Capital Citizenship and the Changing Logic of Immigrant Admissions. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 46, 12: 2515–2532.
• Erez, Lior. 2021. In For a Penny, or: If you Disapprove of Investment Migration, Why Do You Approve of High-Skilled Migration? Moral Philosophy and Politics 8, 1: 155-178.
• Espejo, Paulina Ochoa. 2018. What Money Can't Buy: Face-to-Face Cooperation and Local Democratic Life. In Debating Transformations of National Citizenship, ed. R. Bauböck. New York, Springer International: 43-46.
• European Comission. Spain- highly-qualified worker. https://ec.europa.eu/immigration/spain-highly-qualified-worker_en
• European Commission. 2007. Attractive Conditions for the Admission and residence of Highly Qualified Immigrants https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/MEMO_07_423
• Findlay, Alan Mackay, and Sophie Cranston. 2015. What’s in a Research Agenda? An Evaluation of Research Developments in the Arena of Skilled International Migration. International Development Planning Review 37, 1: 17-31.
• FitzGerald, David Scott, David Cook-Martin, Angela S. Garcia, and Rawan Arar. 2018. Can You Become One of US? A Historical Comparison of Legal Selection of ‘Assimilable’ Immigrants in Europe and the Americas. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 44, 1: 27-47
• Fraser, Nancy. 2014. Can Society be Commodities All the Way Down? Post-Polanyian Reflections on Capitalist Crisis. Economy and Society 43, 4: 541-558
• Glick Schiller, Nina, and Noel Salazar. 2013. Regimes of Mobility across the Globe. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 39, 2: 183-200.
• Government of United Kingdom. Apply for the Global Talent Visa. https://www.gov.uk/global-talent
• Government of United Kingdom. Skilled Worker Visa. https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/your-job
• Government of United Kingdom. 2021. Why do People Come to the UK: To Work https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-year-ending-june-2021/why-do-people-come-to-the-uk-to-work
• Guild, Elspeth. 2007. EU Policy on Labour Migration: A First Look at the Commission's Blue Card Initiative. CEPS Policy Brief, No. 145, https://ssrn.com/abstract=1334076
• Hamada, Koichi, and Jagdish Bhagwati. 1975. Domestic Distortions, Imperfect Information and the Brain Drain. Journal of Development Economics 2, 3: 265-279.
• Harpaz, Yossi. 2019. Citizenship 2.0: Dual Nationality as a Global Asset. Princeton, Princeton University.
• Harpaz, Yossi, and Pablo Mateos. 2018. Strategic Citizenship: Negotiating Membership in the Age of Dual Nationality. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 45, 6: 843-857.
• Hermanni, Hagen, and Robert Neumann. 2018. ‘Refugees Welcome?’ The Interplay between Perceived Threats and General Concerns on the Acceptance of Refugees – a Factorial Survey Approach in Germany. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 45, 3: 1–26.
• Işın, Engin Fahri, and Patricia K. Wood, Patricia K. 1999. Citizenship and Identity. New York, SAGE.
• Jansen, Joost, Gijsbert Oonk, and Godfried Engbersen. 2018. Nationality Swapping in the Olympic Field: Towards the Marketization of Citizenship? Citizenship Studies 22, 5: 523–539.
• Joppke, Christian. 2010. The Inevitable Lightening of Citizenship. European Journal of Sociology / Archives Européennes de Sociologie 51, 1: 9–32.
• Joppke, Christian. 2019. The Instrumental Turn of Citizenship. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 45, 6: 858-878.
• Joppke, Christian. 2021. Earned Citizenship. European Journal of Sociology / Archives Européennes de Sociologie (first view):1–35.
• Hiebert, Daniel. 2019. The Canadian Express Entry System for Selecting Economic Migrants: Progress and Persistent Challenges. Migration Policy Institute. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/sites/default/files/publications/TCM-Competitiveness-Canada_Final.pdf
• Karcı Korfalı, Deniz and Deniz Şenol Sert. 2019. Debating the Dual Citizenship–integration Nexus in Turkey. Uluslararası İlişkiler 16, 64: 93-106.
• Kochenov, Dimitry. 2020. Citizenship. Cambridge, the MIT Press.
• Koslowski, Rey. 2013. Selective Migration Policy Models and Changing Realities of Implementation. International Migration 52, 3: 121–137.
• Kunz, Sarah. 2016. Privileged Mobilities: Locating the Expatriate in Migration Scholarship. Geography Compass 10, 3: 89–101.
• Laboratory News. 2021. UK’s Global Talent Visa Supports Mobility of Scientists and Researchers. Laboratory News. https://www.labnews.co.uk/article/2031176/uks-global-talent-visa-supports-mobility-of-scientists-and-researchers
• Lieberman, Robert C. 1994. Shifting the Color Line: Race and the American Welfare State. Harvard, Harvard University.
• Lim, Desiree. 2017. Selecting Immigrants by Skill: A Case of Wrongful Discrimination? Social Theory and Practice 43, 2: 369-396.
• Liu-Farrer, Gracia, Brenda S. Yeoh, and Michiel Baas. 2021. Social Construction of Skill: An Analytic Approach Toward the Question of Cross-Border Labor Mobilities. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 47, 10: 2237-2251.
• Lister, Ruth. 1997. Citizenship: Feminist Perspectives. New York, New York University Press.
• Lister, Ruth. 2007. Inclusive Citizenship: Realizing the Potential. Citizenship Studies 11, 1: 49–61.
• Magni-Berton, Raul. 2018. Citizenship for Those who Invest into the Future of the State is Not Wrong, the Price Is the Problem. In Debating Transformations of National Citizenship, ed. R. Bauböck. New York, Springer.
• Mann, Michael. 1987. Ruling Strategies and Citizenship. Sociology 21, 3: 339–354.
• Marshall, Thomas Humphrey. 1992. Citizenship and Social Class. London, Pluto.
• Mason, Rowena. 2020. Fast-track “Global Talent Visa” to be Launched Days After Brexit. The Guardian, January 26. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/26/fast-track-global-talent-visa-brexit
• Menz, Georg. 2009. The Neoliberalized State and Migration Control: The Rise of Private Actors in the Enforcement and Design of Migration Policy. Debatte: Journal of Contemporary Central and Eastern Europe 17, 3: 315-332.
• Menz, Georg. 2019. Understanding the Identity of a Policy Field: The European Commission and Liberal Modernization in the Domain of Labour and Social Policy. Comparative European Politics 17, 4: 603–618.
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. 2015. Highly Skilled Professional Visa. July 22. https://www.mofa.go.jp/j_info/visit/visa/long/visa16.html
• Parain Migrantes. 2019. Entrepreneurs Law—Highly Qualified Professionals. Parainmigrantes. October 31. https://www.parainmigrantes.info/entrepreneurs-law-highly-qualified-professionals/
• Pateman, Carole, Christopher Pierson, and Frank Castles. 2006. The Patriarchal Welfare State. In The Welfare State Reader, eds. C. Pierson, F. G. Castles, and I. K. Naumann. London, Polity
• Polanyi, Karl. 2001. The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time. Boston, Beacon.
• Prime Minister’s Office. 2020. Boost for UK science with Unlimited Visa Offer to World’s Brightest and Best. Government of UK, January 27. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/boost-for-uk-science-with-unlimited-visa-offer-to-worlds-brightest-and-best
• Prime Minister’s Office. 2021. Immigration Rules Appendix Global Talent—Immigration Rules. Government of UK. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-appendix-global-talent
• Přívara, A., E. Rievajová, and A. Barbulescu. 2020. Attracting High Skilled Individuals in the EU: The Finnish Experience. Migration Letters 17, 2: 369-377.
• Robotham, Don. 2009. Afterward: Learning from Polanyi. In Market and Society: The Great Transformation Today, eds. C. Hann, and K. Hart. Cambridge, Cambridge University.
• Sandel, Michael. 2020. The Tyranny of Merit: What’s Become of the Common Good? London, Penguin.
• Sandoz, Laure. 2019. Mobilities of the Highly Skilled towards Switzerland: The Role of Intermediaries in Defining ‘Wanted Immigrants’. New York, Springer.
• Shachar, Ayelet. 2007. Citizenship as Inherited Property. Political Theory 35, 3: 253–287.
• Shachar, Ayelet. 2008. The Shifting Border of Immigration Regulation Symposium: Territory without Boundaries: Immigration Beyond Territory. Michigan Journal of International Law 30, 3: 809–840.
• Shachar, Ayelet. 2009. Birthright Lottery: Citizenship and Global Inequality. Harvard, Harvard University Press.
• Shachar, Ayelet. 2011a. Picking Winners: Olympic Citizenship and the Global Race for Talent. Yale Law Journal 523: 2088-20139.
• Shachar, Ayelet. 2011b. The Birthright Lottery: Response to Interlocutors. Issues in Legal Scholarship 9, 1: Article 13.
• Shachar, Ayelet. 2014. Introduction: Citizenship and the ‘Right to Have Rights’. Citizenship Studies 18, 2: 114–124.
• Shachar, Ayelet. 2018. Dangerous Liaisons: Money and Citizenship. In Debating Transformations of National Citizenship, ed. R. Bauböck. New York, Springer: 7-15.
• Shachar, Ayelet, and Ran Hirschl. 2013. Recruiting ‘Super Talent’: The New World of Selective Migration Regimes. Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 20, 1: 71–107.
• Shachar, Ayelet, and Ran Hirschl. 2014. On Citizenship, States, and Markets. Journal of Political Philosophy 22, 2: 231–257.
• Skeldon, Ronald. 2009. Of Skilled Migration, Brain Drains and Policy Responses. International Migration 47, 4: 3–29.
• Somers, Margaret. 2008. Genealogies of Citizenship. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
• Spiro, P. J. 2008. Beyond Citizenship: American Identity After Globalization. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
• Spiro, Peter J. 2018. A World Wide Web of Citizenship. In Debating Transformations of National Citizenship, ed. R. Bauböck. New York, Springer International: 295-298.
• Surak, Kristin. 2021. Millionaire Mobility and the Selling of Citizenship. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 47, 1: 166-189.
• Tanasoca, Ana. 2016. Citizenship for Sale: Neomediaval, Not Just Neoliberal? European Journal of Sociology 57, 1: 169-195.
• TBMM. 2016. T.C. Başbakanlık Kanunlar ve Kararlar Genel Müdürlüğü. TBMM. https://www2.tbmm.gov.tr/d26/1/1-0727.pdf.
• Turkish Laborlaw. 2017. Turquoise Card Regulation. Turkish Labor Law, March 14. https://turkishlaborlaw.com/international-workforce-law/turquoise-card-regulation/.
• Van Apeldoorn, Bastian, Nana de Graaff, and Henk Overbeek. 2012. The Reconfiguration of the Global State–Capital Nexus. Globalizations 9, 4: 471-486.
• Visa Guide World. Japan Highly Skilled Professional Visa. VisaGuide.World. https://visaguide.world/asia/japan-visa/highly-skilled-professional/ (accessed August 31, 2021).
• Ypi, Lea. 2018. Borders of Class: Migration and Citizenship in the Capitalist State. Ethics & International Affairs 32, 2: 141-152.
• Yuval Davis, Nira. 1997. Gender and Nation. New York, SAGE.