The migration regimes of several European liberal democracies (such as Austria and the Netherlands) assert that a right of residence for newcomers can be rejected or withdrawn if they fail to complete certain compulsory ‘integration’ programs or tests. As a result, integration policies seem to be increasingly utilized as (extended) immigration policies, selecting who deserves entry, permanent residency or naturalization. Those migrants who are allegedly less integrated are refused territorial admittance or have to return to their countries of origin after a stated period of time during which they had the opportunity to pass the required integration demands. I explore the legitimacy of this new development and the notion of ‘integration’ as a prerequisite to obtain a more secure legal status, and argue that this quasi-contractual framework in which migrants are expected to deliver ‘integration’ in exchange for legal rights provided by the state can lead to unjust outcomes.
