Age patterns of emigration from Egypt and return to it during 2000–2013

Abstract Egyptian emigration has been addressed as a singular incident, and it does not examine the possibility of returning to its home country or moving to another destination. Thus, more studies are needed to fill a gap in our knowledge of emigration from Egypt. Using a multistate life table approach, the study estimated the probability of emigration from Egypt according to destinations and the exact age of the emigrants, the probability of returning from the destination to the home country before reaching age 60, and the expected migration time in each destination; the study depended on data from the rich nationwide “The Egypt Household International Migration Survey.” Results confirm the pattern of migration from Egypt, which is acknowledged through previous studies, except that the driver of migration is no longer unemployment but rather in search of better conditions or a decent life. Also, the results indicate that Saudi Arabia attracted the largest percentage of working-age emigrants from Egypt, while Kuwait was the more stable destination. Libya is considered the least stable destination for Egyptian emigrants and the preferred country for young emigrants. Moreover, Saudi Arabia was the preferred destination for older Egyptians, followed by Kuwait. The probability of returning to Egypt increases significantly at 50-59 for all destination countries except Jordan. Finally, if an Egyptian emigrant wishes to move from their first destination, the next destination will be Saudi Arabia.