Shooting yourself in the foot with immigration policy is the default, not the exception. Roughly speaking, developed countries want to welcome the immigrants w

Shooting yourself in the foot with immigration policy is the default, not the exception. Roughly speaking, developed countries want to welcome the immigrants who would contribute to the economy and reject the ones who would be a burden. But it's difficult to achieve that with a single set of policies and a single immigration authority. Usually you end up either encouraging or discouraging immigration categorically. Either the culture in the immigration authority leans towards accepting anyone who could plausibly meet the criteria, or it's constantly looking for excuses to reject any application. Most countries tend to choose the latter.