Abstract

With the mass influx of asylum seekers to European countries, a high demand of empirical evidence on potential influencing factors concerning the subsequent economic and social integration process of refugees emerge. Drawing on a new and unique dataset, the “IAB-BAMF-SOEP Refugee Sample”, we provide first evidence for Germany, to what extent the current legal status of a humanitarian migrant influence the labor market integration process. Besides the direct effect on the rate of transition into first employment, we also expect an indirect effect through investments in human and social capital.