Guess Who's Coming to Dinner: Canada and the United States Set the Table for International Migration Data

Cynthia J. Davis, U.S. Census Bureau
Marie-France Germain, Statistics Canada
Éric Caron-Malenfant, Statistics Canada

Using the most recent rounds of census data from Canada and the United States, special tabulations have been produced indicating the magnitude, direction, and timing of migration, and select socioeconomic characteristics of Canadians and of the U.S. population present in each other North American country (e.g., Canadians in the U.S.). These tables reflect the diverse ways of classifying international migration, and underscore the importance of joint cooperation across these two countries. Such tabulations permit the analyst to assess the feasibility of matching concepts, terminology, and definitions relevant to the measurement of international migration across the countries. These special tabulations thus serve as a catalyst for longer-term goals of data sharing among the two countries, of formulating consistent concepts, terminology, and definitions, and of analyzing the data with regard to trends and differentiations in international migration.