MPIDR Working Paper
Why Do (even) immigrant women in south korea exhibit depressed fertility? Investigating the fertility of commodified marriage migrants
MPIDR Working Paper WP-2026-039, 47 pages.
Rostock, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (September 2026)
Abstract
Fertility of immigrant women has often been framed as a remedy for declining birth rates and population ageing in some high-income countries with low fertility rates. South Korea, for example, has attracted immigrant women to form families with South Korean men – often through a commodified process involving broker agencies – resulting in older native men matching with younger Southeast Asian women. Yet, immigrant women in South Korea have shown fertility rates that are either similar to or lower than those of native Korean women. To explain this unexpectedly low trend, this study 1) describes sociodemographic characteristics of immigrant women in commodified marriages, 2) quantifies their first and second birth risks, and 3) tests if a large spousal age gap explains the lower fertility outcomes. Event-history analyses were conducted based on the samples derived from National Survey of Multicultural Families and the National Survey on Fertility, Family Health, and Welfare. Findings indicate that commodified marriage migrant women display an accelerated transition to a first birth, but show depressed rates for second births, compared to other migrant women. Furthermore, the relative older age of husband appears as a condition that deters fertility progression. These findings suggest that structural barriers, including large spousal age gaps and multidimensional disadvantages, may constrain these women’s family-building prospects.
Keywords: Korea, South, fertility, immigrants