ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the boundaries, establishment, internal structures, governance, and recent trends of the East Asian migration region. It focuses on Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan as the three largest immigration economies in the region, which have kept immigration under strict control despite the huge potential for intraregional migration. The chapter argues that the regional context and its intraregional migration potential are crucial factors for fully understanding immigration policy in nation-states of the region. It examines primarily labour migration, which is not only the most important type of migration in the region but also the most important issue in public and political debates about immigration in East Asia. The chapter also argues that a regional perspective is of crucial importance in order to fully understand migration movements and immigration policies in East Asia.
