A Guide to Understanding the Difference Between Migrants Vs Immigrants
By Jyoti Jha On a daily basis, millions of individuals tend to leave their own nations with the intention of a better life. They are required to make a difficult decision for the purpose of seeking a better life in another nation.
But we are often confused about the terms migrant and immigrant. Worry not! In this article, we will discuss the difference between a migrant and an immigrant.Â
Reasons For Leaving One’s Home Country?
Most individuals have experienced leaving the place they have grown up in. Some tend to move away to a nearby city or village. But there are situations that enable some individuals who move away from their homes temporarily or forever.
Every day, individuals tend to make a difficult decision to leave the place they love and have spent a long time with the intention of finding a better and safe place.
There are a variety of reasons why individuals across the globe seek to rebuild their lives in a different country. Some tend to leave for the attainment of knowledge or employment. Whereas others are forced to flee their region for fear of human rights violations.Â
Moreover, some are also forced to leave their country on a permanent basis as they face violence and armed conflicts, which they aim to escape from.
There tends to be many reasons why it might be too dangerous or difficult for individuals to stay in their own nations. For instance, many tend to flee from violence, war, hunger, extreme poverty, or because of their sexual orientation or from natural disasters.
On the other hand, some people do not leave their country due to dangers but with the intention of believing that they have a better chance of finding work in another nation because they have the capital and education to seek opportunities elsewhere.
Moreover, some individuals aim to join their relatives or friends who are already residing abroad. Or they might also wish to complete their education in another nation.Â
This means there are a variety of reasons why individuals aim to leave their nation to build a new life in a new country.
Migrants Vs Immigrants: The Differences
We have heard about these two terms a lot in our daily conversations. But, we still tend to have confusion regarding these two terms. One of the most used questions is, are migrants the same as immigrants? The answer to this question is as follows:
A migrant is an individual who is moving from one place to another with the aim of better opportunities, especially related to employment or education. But, the main difference between a migrant and an immigrant is that a migrant aims to move across borders for a temporary period of time.
This means a migrant might leave their home country for a limited period of time with the intention of employment or completing their education in another region.
On the other hand, an immigrant is an individual who makes a conscious decision to leave their home country with the intention of settling in a foreign nation. Immigrants tend to go through a lengthy process for immigrating to a new nation.
Many immigrants become lawful permanent residents and eventually new citizens in the new nation. Similarly, immigrants are known to research their destination, explore work opportunities, and learn the language of the region they are planning to settle in.
Are Asylum Seekers Migrants?
There is no accepted legal definition of a migrant. One of the typical definitions of a migrant is that individuals who are living outside their country of origin are defined as migrants.
There are many migrants who aim to leave their nation for the purpose of better work opportunities or education or to join their families who are living abroad. On the other hand, some migrants tend to leave their nation with the intention of leaving the poverty, violence, political unrest, and natural disasters that tend to exist within their home region.
But one of the most striking aspects of a migrant is that they are not refugees when they leave their nation with the aim of finding a better opportunity. This is because a refugee is someone who flees their nation with the intention of seeking asylum.Â
On the other hand, migrants are not always fleeing their country with the intention of seeking asylum but can be observed for the purpose of leaving their country to seek better opportunities abroad.
So, it can be stated that asylum seekers can be migrants, but not all migrants tend to be asylum seekers.
Are Migrants The Same As Immigrants?
No, migrants are not the same as immigrants. This is because migrants tend to leave their home nation for a limited period of time. Generally, a migrant will be willing to come back to their home after completing their tasks abroad.
On the other hand, an immigrant is a person who voluntarily decides to leave their home country permanently. But, the striking feature is that an immigrant will not have the fear of returning to his or her home nation.
However, a migrant might have a fear of returning to his or her home for fear of prosecution if they have fled to another nation to avoid conflicts present within their home nation. This might be the reason why an individual might cross borders with the intention of finding better opportunities in a different nation. But, unlike a migrant, an immigrant does not have a fear of prosecution if they have left a nation that is ridden with violence or conflict.
Final Thoughts
Now, you have a fair idea regarding the main differences between a migrant and an immigrant. You can simply remember that a migrant tends to cross borders for a temporary period of time, with the intention of coming back home on a said period of time.
On the other hand, an immigrant is an individual who has voluntarily decided to leave their home to settle in a foreign land for better opportunities or other personal reasons.
I hope you have found this article useful to learn about immigration and migration components.
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