Demography · Nov 12, 2026
Citizenship and Immigrant Longevity: Evidence From U.S. Census–Linked Social Security Administration Death Records
By Shi J, Fletcher JM
Highlights We link full-count 1920–1940 U.S. censuses to death records to study citizenship and longevity. Immigrant men who were citizens by 1930 lived 7.6 months longer than those without first papers. Sons whose fathers were citizens by 1920 lived 4.1 months longer than sons of noncitizens. Earlier naturalization is associated with greater longevity gains in both generations. Adjusting for fathers’ SES and sons’ early-adult SES reduces the fathers’ citizenship effect.