To Send, Or Not To Send: That Is The Question. A Review of The Literature On Workers' Remittances

Abstract

This paper reviews the empirical literature on workers' remittances. Based
on the empirical evidence, we are able to assess the facts and myths about the determinants
and consequences of remittances. We also discuss the potential implications
of our findings for the theoretical literature on remittances and account for the
open-ended questions that still remain. The review suggests that there are several
motivations to remit and it does not seem that one specific motivation has been consistently
selected over the others. The literature also suggests that remittances have
the potential to impact a large number of variables related to the recipient country
and household.