Why non­cit­izen­ship in the Gulf may be pre­ferred to pur­su­ing West­ern cit­izen­ship

De­vel­op­ment sum­mary

Mo­hammad Amaan Sid­diqui ex­am­ines why some mi­grants in the Gulf may choose a non-citizen status rather than pursue West­ern cit­izen­ship where access to local na­tion­al­ity is re­stric­ted. The ana­lys­is links that choice, shaped by re­strict­ive jus san­guinis policies, to cap­it­al ac­cu­mu­la­tion, busi­ness form­a­tion and sponsor-free long-term or per­man­ent res­id­ence.

Draw­ing on field­work con­cern­ing mi­gra­tion de­cisions in the United Arab Emir­ates, the art­icle finds that some res­id­ents de­lib­er­ately remain in the Gulf be­cause of per­ceived safety, cul­tur­al be­long­ing and eco­nom­ic op­por­tun­it­ies. West­ern cit­izen­ship is also con­sidered as a means by which some onward mi­grants may over­come nationality-based wage dis­crim­in­a­tion in the region, so non­cit­izen­ship is not ex­plained solely through pre­car­ity or vic­tim­hood.