A Winding Path to Integration: Venezuelan Migrants’ Regularization and Labor Market Prospects

39 A WINDING PATH TO INTEGRATION A WINDING PATH TO INTEGRATION Executive Summary The scale of displacement from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela since 2015, with more than 6 million Venezuelan refugees and migrants moving to other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, has challenged governments across the region to rethink how they manage movement across their borders and the integrati. [...] Importantly, as noted above, regularization mechanisms vary in terms of the length of the Regularization mechanisms that grant status they grant and the rights they convey a pathway to permanent residence and to migrants during their stay. [...] Regularization work permits, as is the case in Colombia, mechanisms that grant a pathway to permanent residence and work permits, are the most generous and provide the as is the case in Colombia, are the most most support for migrants’ longer-term generous and provide the most support for integration and related development goals. [...] This section of the report examines these and other sources of data on both the regularized and unregularized population, as well as on Venezuelan workers in general.52 Based on analysis of the available evidence on Colombia’s PEP and TSPV regularization programs, it highlights key findings about the programs’ impacts on the labor market outcomes of Venezuelans. [...] For example, it could be used to create policies to meet the private sector’s demand for a professional and well- qualified labor force and to support the integration of migrants with varied educational and professional backgrounds, in line with the country’s mid- and long-term development goals.