Elderly Immigrants' Labor Supply Response to Supplemental Security Income

38 Pages Posted: 26 Mar 2009

See all articles by Neeraj Kaushal

Neeraj Kaushal

Columbia University - School of Social Work; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: January 1, 2009

Abstract

This paper examines the effect of changes in immigrant eligibility for Supplemental Security Income in 1996 on the employment and retirement behaviors of foreign-born elderly persons. I find that denial of SSI was associated with a 5 percentage point (15 percent) increase in the employment of non-citizen elderly men and a 5.6 percentage point (11 percent) decrease in their retirement rate. The estimated effects were higher for recent arrivals, a group most likely to be affected by the policy change. Further, while recent arrivals were more likely to increase part-time work, the earlier arrivals responded to the policy by increasing full-time employment. I find no consistent evidence that denial of SSI affected the employment of elderly immigrant women, but some evidence that it raised their retirement rate, specifically among those who immigrated in recent years.

Suggested Citation

Kaushal, Neeraj, Elderly Immigrants' Labor Supply Response to Supplemental Security Income (January 1, 2009). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1368822 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1368822

Neeraj Kaushal (Contact Author)

Columbia University - School of Social Work ( email )

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