Remittance behaviour among Latin American immigrants in the United States

Fernando Lozano-Ascencio, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

This paper analyzes the factors that influence remittance behaviour in the United States of Latin American immigrants. Data for this study come from The National Survey of Latinos, conducted in 2002, and is analyzed using logistic regressions. Individual characteristics, financial ability to remit, and family obligations in the home and in the host country are hypothesized to affect remittance behaviour. Results of the regression analyses confirm previous research findings, with the exception of one: those migrants who have a bank account in the host country are more likely to transfer remittances than migrants who do not have one. Therefore, having a bank account in the country of destination –regardless of their migratory status– has allowed migrants to better administer their economic resources, has increased their likeliness of sending remittances to their countries of origin, and has helped them with their process to consolidate their economic citizenship.