The 2023 World Development Report, titled “Migrants, Refugees, and Societies,” analyses the state policies, laws, and labour market forces that determine the ability of migrants to improve their social and economic wellbeing. However, in its analysis the report adopts a state-centric view, focusing predominantly on the state as the primary actor in the management of migration, thereby eliding a thorough analysis of how formal and informal institutions at the supranational and subnational levels impact the lives of migrants beyond citizenship. In this response, Sabrina Axster and Rachel Beatty Riedl instead argue for multi-scalar analysis and evaluation of the policies that affect migrants.