Remittances from Puerto Rico: Unsuspected Transnational Locality in Times of Crisis

Abstract

This paper looks at immigrant remittances from Puerto Rico as a tool to understand how immigrant communities have faced and engaged the economic crisis. For example, from the data reviewed, it stems that immigrant remittances sent from Puerto Rico do not follow the same patterns as remittances sent from the United States and Europe inasmuch as they seem less affected by the global financial crisis and local unemployment rates. The research conducted also tends to indicate that money transfers from Puerto Rico might allow us to grasp the growing economic transnational relationships that are being maintained by varied immigrant communities on the Island. The paper also proposes that going forward a deeper look at international monetary transfers from Puerto Rico can be used to better understand transnational relationships in Puerto Rico and also allows us to compare and contrast the way these relationships are formed and maintained in comparison with other countries.

Keywords: Remittances, Puerto Rico economy, money service business, transnationalism, migration