We examine the role of Venezuelan forced migration on the propagation of 15 infectious diseases in Colombia. For this purpose, we use rich municipal-monthly panel data. We exploit the fact that municipalities closer to the main migration entry points have a disproportionateexposure to infected migrants when the cumulative migration flows increase. We find that higher refugee inflows are associated with increments in the incidence of vaccine-preventable diseases, such as chickenpox and tuberculosis, as well as sexually transmitted diseases, includingAIDS and syphilis. However, we find no significant effects of migration on the propagation of vector-borne diseases.

How can the regularization of approximately half a million migrant’s impact crime reports in hosting areas? To identify the effects of this large amnesty, we match confidential administrative data on the location of undocumented migrants with department monthly data from crime reports and compare crime outcomes in departments that were granted different average time windows to register for the amnesty online, before and after the amnesty roll-out. We document that the regularization caused a reduction of domestic crime and an increment on sexual crime reports. Both results are in line with qualitative evidence suggesting that the regularization empowered migrants to report crimes against them and also improved their mental health.

Between 2014 and 2020 over 1.8 million refugees fled from Venezuela to Colombia as a result ofa humanitarian crisis, many of them without a regular migratory status. We study the short- tomedium-term labor market impacts in Colombia of the Permiso Temporal de Permanenciaprogram, the largest migratory amnesty program offered to undocumented migrants in adeveloping country in modern history. The program granted regular migratory status and workpermits to nearly half a million undocumented Venezuelan migrants in Colombia in August 2018.To identify the effects of the program, we match confidential administrative data on the locationof undocumented migrants with department-monthly data from household surveys and comparelabor outcomes in departments that were granted different average time windows to register forthe amnesty online, before and after the program roll-out. We are only able to distinguish negativealbeit negligible effects of the program on the formal employment of Colombian workers. Theseeffects are predominantly concentrated in highly educated and in female workers.

How does facilitating the economic integration of migrants change migrant’s fertility decisions? We leverage a panel survey representative of Venezuelan irregular migrants in Colombia to compare the fertility decisions of eligible and ineligible households before and after a large migratory amnesty was launched in Colombia in 2018. The amnesty granted irregular migrants a labor permit and access to full social services. Our results suggest that the amnesty lowered the likelihood of having a child among program beneficiaries, possibly driven by better labor market opportunities for women and better access to family planning through health services.