Returning Home When Immigration Fails: Risk Factors and the Need for Improved Care

Migrating is stressful. Even under the best of circumstances, voluntarily moving from one’s home country to another country requires careful consideration of several potentially stressful factors. A non-exhaustive list would include transportation, housing, finances, social support, language proficiency, and acculturation issues. In 2017, an estimated 68 million persons involuntarily migrated – 40 million internally displaced persons, 25 million refugees and 3 million asylum seekers (United Nations, 2017). Forcible displacement puts individuals and families at even greater risk of stress related to moving – as there is generally less time available for planning. What happens when immigration fails, particularly for those who were forcibly displaced? The risk to well-being naturally increases, but the nature and extent is unknown. Most of the research attention has been given to the challenges faced during a migrant’s outbound journey. To date, little attention has focused on the challenges faced when migrants are required to return home. This paper highlights some of the risk factors related to the journey home and the need for improved care