OCR A Level Geography Revision Notes: Global
Migration
hank you so much for purchasing these notes! I hope they will be of use to you.
T
For some additional context, I created these notes myself using both teacher guidance, the OCR textbook, and with a lot of
additional research. Using these notes alone, I was lucky enough to achieve an A* in the 2026 exams. I therefore hope they will
achieve the same for you.
his set includes notes that follow the OCR specification for the Global Migration topic, including case study knowledge as
T
well. The case studies in this set are Brazil, the USA, Laos and various smaller studies are given as examples to improve
understanding. These are the only case studies you will need for this specification.
I have also included many AO2 points that can be memorised to achieve marks for “application of knowledge” in your essays.
Whilst you can of course think of these spontaneously in the exam, I found it beneficial to memorise these key limitations and
simply regurgitate them into my essays so that there was less pressure under exam conditions.
I have also made several other notes available for other OCR A Level Geography topics, so make sure to check those out if you
found these useful.
Good luck!
, Global Migration
Spatial Patterns
Present
igrationis the (semi)permanent change of residenceof an individual or group. Long-term migration lasts for at least 1 year.
M
The IOM (International organisation for Migration) estimates that,in 2020, 3.6%of the global populationwere international
migrants, of which48%were women. The rate of femalemigration has been in decline since 2000.
( According to the IOM (International Organisation for Migration):
NUMBERS: 2020 saw3.6%of the world’s population asbeing international migrants.
COMPOSITION: of all migrants,48%were female,60%were labour migrants, and under 15% were refugees or asylum-seekers/
DIRECTION: migrants are more likely to remain in thesame continent, particularly true for Europe and North America.
USA, Germany, and Saudi Arabia are the top choices for migrants.. Elsewhere, the top corridors are Mexico->USA, Russia-> <-
Ukraine, and Syria->Turkiye.
he IOM considers work, family and study-related factors as the most popular reasons for migration. Forced migration following
T
conflict, disaster or persecution only make up <15% of migrants.
ee Migration Model:
L
In simpler terms, there are several push factors in the country of origin, pull factors in the destination country, and a set of
barriers to simple migration between these places.
Negative factorsthat “push” include a lack of employmentopportunity, political instability, poor education, etc.
Positive factorsthat “pull” include high job demand,family reunification, quality healthcare, etc.
Intervening obstaclesthat are met along the way includelanguage barriers, complex visa processes, financial costs of
movement, and physical barriers.
or example:
F
(inter-regional)between 2015 and 2018, migrationfrom Libyan ports to Italy’s southern point across the Central Mediterranean
route dropped by80%. The Missing Migrant Projectreported approx. 14,000 migrant deaths in this region between these years,
making the intervening obstacles outweigh the “pull” factors perceived in Italy.
(intra-regional)The EU has established a “SchengenProject", whereby internal border control is abolished for members of other
EU states. Following Poland’s EU entry in 2004, Polish nationals living in the UK is now at approx. 700,000. This is because the
journey is much less life-threatening, cost of living is 45% less expensive, and diasporic communities have continued to establish.
Relationship Between Migration + Socio-economic Development
alue of migrant remittances: in 2022, $831bn worthof private funds was sent by migrants to the non-migrants living in their
V
original communities. There's an inverse relationship between development status and reliance on remittances as part of GDP.
Less than 0.1% of Canada's GDP are remittances, compared to 27% of Nepal's. HICs like the USA, Germany, and Saudi are the main
sources, and LICs the main receivers.
Although only 3.5% of their GDP, India receives over $111bn annually in remittances.
owever, remittance taxes pose a threat to the developmental effects of remittances: to send money intraregionally in Africa in
H
2014, remittance taxes reached 20%.
ffects of migration:
E
Stability-
1. A new influx of primarily working-age migrants canrestabilise the demographyofan ageing country.Were
it not for this migration, the UK, for example, would not be able to fulfill its workforce.
HOWEVER, only a benefit where migration is monitored and regulated; in Spain, for example, many expats
are British pensioners, who do NOT contribute to the workforce
2. ocial remittancesinvolve the return of new valuesand ideas to the source country, therefore allowing for
S
social development, peacebuilding, and political stability (i.e. democratic values).
3. conomic remittancesallow houses to be pulled outof poverty when substituting their household income.
E
El Salvador, studies have found that children in families receiving remittances stay in school for more
years.
Growth-
1. ax inputinto the host country increases, as migrantsact as both consumer and producers. - in the UK,17% of
T
non-UK nationals are entrepreneurs, while only 10% of Brits are!
2. In the country of origin, where remittances supplement household income, consumption of local resources increases,
s timulating alocal multiplier effect.
HOWEVER this can also lead to regional inequalities where families without relatives abroad become
excluded from the gentrified market.
Migration
hank you so much for purchasing these notes! I hope they will be of use to you.
T
For some additional context, I created these notes myself using both teacher guidance, the OCR textbook, and with a lot of
additional research. Using these notes alone, I was lucky enough to achieve an A* in the 2026 exams. I therefore hope they will
achieve the same for you.
his set includes notes that follow the OCR specification for the Global Migration topic, including case study knowledge as
T
well. The case studies in this set are Brazil, the USA, Laos and various smaller studies are given as examples to improve
understanding. These are the only case studies you will need for this specification.
I have also included many AO2 points that can be memorised to achieve marks for “application of knowledge” in your essays.
Whilst you can of course think of these spontaneously in the exam, I found it beneficial to memorise these key limitations and
simply regurgitate them into my essays so that there was less pressure under exam conditions.
I have also made several other notes available for other OCR A Level Geography topics, so make sure to check those out if you
found these useful.
Good luck!
, Global Migration
Spatial Patterns
Present
igrationis the (semi)permanent change of residenceof an individual or group. Long-term migration lasts for at least 1 year.
M
The IOM (International organisation for Migration) estimates that,in 2020, 3.6%of the global populationwere international
migrants, of which48%were women. The rate of femalemigration has been in decline since 2000.
( According to the IOM (International Organisation for Migration):
NUMBERS: 2020 saw3.6%of the world’s population asbeing international migrants.
COMPOSITION: of all migrants,48%were female,60%were labour migrants, and under 15% were refugees or asylum-seekers/
DIRECTION: migrants are more likely to remain in thesame continent, particularly true for Europe and North America.
USA, Germany, and Saudi Arabia are the top choices for migrants.. Elsewhere, the top corridors are Mexico->USA, Russia-> <-
Ukraine, and Syria->Turkiye.
he IOM considers work, family and study-related factors as the most popular reasons for migration. Forced migration following
T
conflict, disaster or persecution only make up <15% of migrants.
ee Migration Model:
L
In simpler terms, there are several push factors in the country of origin, pull factors in the destination country, and a set of
barriers to simple migration between these places.
Negative factorsthat “push” include a lack of employmentopportunity, political instability, poor education, etc.
Positive factorsthat “pull” include high job demand,family reunification, quality healthcare, etc.
Intervening obstaclesthat are met along the way includelanguage barriers, complex visa processes, financial costs of
movement, and physical barriers.
or example:
F
(inter-regional)between 2015 and 2018, migrationfrom Libyan ports to Italy’s southern point across the Central Mediterranean
route dropped by80%. The Missing Migrant Projectreported approx. 14,000 migrant deaths in this region between these years,
making the intervening obstacles outweigh the “pull” factors perceived in Italy.
(intra-regional)The EU has established a “SchengenProject", whereby internal border control is abolished for members of other
EU states. Following Poland’s EU entry in 2004, Polish nationals living in the UK is now at approx. 700,000. This is because the
journey is much less life-threatening, cost of living is 45% less expensive, and diasporic communities have continued to establish.
Relationship Between Migration + Socio-economic Development
alue of migrant remittances: in 2022, $831bn worthof private funds was sent by migrants to the non-migrants living in their
V
original communities. There's an inverse relationship between development status and reliance on remittances as part of GDP.
Less than 0.1% of Canada's GDP are remittances, compared to 27% of Nepal's. HICs like the USA, Germany, and Saudi are the main
sources, and LICs the main receivers.
Although only 3.5% of their GDP, India receives over $111bn annually in remittances.
owever, remittance taxes pose a threat to the developmental effects of remittances: to send money intraregionally in Africa in
H
2014, remittance taxes reached 20%.
ffects of migration:
E
Stability-
1. A new influx of primarily working-age migrants canrestabilise the demographyofan ageing country.Were
it not for this migration, the UK, for example, would not be able to fulfill its workforce.
HOWEVER, only a benefit where migration is monitored and regulated; in Spain, for example, many expats
are British pensioners, who do NOT contribute to the workforce
2. ocial remittancesinvolve the return of new valuesand ideas to the source country, therefore allowing for
S
social development, peacebuilding, and political stability (i.e. democratic values).
3. conomic remittancesallow houses to be pulled outof poverty when substituting their household income.
E
El Salvador, studies have found that children in families receiving remittances stay in school for more
years.
Growth-
1. ax inputinto the host country increases, as migrantsact as both consumer and producers. - in the UK,17% of
T
non-UK nationals are entrepreneurs, while only 10% of Brits are!
2. In the country of origin, where remittances supplement household income, consumption of local resources increases,
s timulating alocal multiplier effect.
HOWEVER this can also lead to regional inequalities where families without relatives abroad become
excluded from the gentrified market.
