This article examines the relationship between immigration policy and crime in seven nations. The countries involved are Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, and the United States. Immigration policy and the criminal involvement of immigrants are compared to determine whether there is a pattern between the two, what that pattern is, and why it exists. The nations examined have very different immigration policies. Some are "immigrant nations," where the volume of immigrants is high, barriers to entry are low, and naturalization is encouraged. Others are "nonimmigrant nations," in which the volume of immigration is relatively low, the barriers to entry are substantial, and permanent settlement and attainment of citizenship are not encouraged. There is a general (but not perfect) pattern in which "immigrant" nations have lower ratios of immigrant to native crime than nations with less liberal policies. It is not clear whether this relationship is due more to the general ability of these nations to integrate foreign populations or to immigration policies per se.
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