@TechReport{iza:izadps:dp7136, author={Duleep, Harriet}, title={U.S. Immigration Policy at a Crossroads}, year={2013}, month={Jan}, institution={Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)}, address={Bonn}, type={IZA Discussion Paper}, number={7136}, url={https://www.iza.org/index.php/publications/dp7136}, abstract={Two issues have taken center stage in the recent debates about U.S. immigration policy: one, illegal immigration and more generally the entrance of poorly educated individuals into the U.S. economy and two, whether the U.S. should continue its family-based admissions system or move towards a skills-based system. This paper analyzes these issues culling evidence from the history of U.S. immigration policy, the experiences of different types of U.S. immigrants, and cross-national comparisons.}, keywords={opportunity cost;skill transferability;human capital investment;entrepreneurship;effect on poorly educated natives;illegal immigration;immigration;learning transferability;family-based admissions;permanence}, }