Repeat migration and remittances: Evidence from Thai migrant workers

Although there is a growing body of literature on repeat migration in the Americas and Europe, no empirical evidence exists in Asia. This paper examines the remittances and savings behavior of repeat migrants, using a special survey on Thai migrants in six major destination countries, conducted by the Asian Research Center for Migration (ARCM) at Chulalongkorn University. The results show that repeated migrants are a highly specific group. Males are more likely to repeat migration, compared with their female counterparts. Repeat migration is strongly correlated with age, which shows an inverted U-shape. Repeat migrants are less likely to send remittances, but more likely to save, compared with first-time migrants. This finding is consistent with the notion that first-time migrant workers remit most of their earned income to Thailand, while those who repeat migration prefer to keep their money rather than remitting it.