Does the Propensity to "Double-up" Vary by Immigrant Class of Entry over the First Four Years after Arrival? Evidence from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada

Claudia Masferrer, Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS)
Celine Le Bourdais, McGill University

Explanations for doubling-up -- coresidence with extended kin and non-kin -- among immigrants center on life-course events, culture, and economic need. Recent studies show the temporary nature of doubled-up households within the adaptation process, but empirical evidence on how entry status influences the duration of being doubled-up remains limited. Using data from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada, results show different patterns for sponsored parents/grandparents shortly after arrival and over time; no differences between economic class principal applicants, sponsored spouses/fiancés/other relatives, and refugees in the odds of doubling-up shortly after arrival; and the odds of being doubled-up for economic class principal applicants are significantly lower than for others, both two and four years after arrival, as their households have greater turnover than other immigrant households. Findings suggest that using a linear effect of time since arrival to measure the migration process without considering variations by entry status is misleading.