Pandemic-induced immobility and female marriage migrants in cross-national families in Singapore

With the rise of international marriage migration in Asia, cross-border mobility and transnational caregiving have become increasingly central to sustaining intergenerational family relationships and collective well-being across borders. Drawing on the concept of ‘potent connections,’ which builds on earlier ideas of ‘affinities,’ this paper examines how the Covid-19 pandemic not only disrupted migrant spouses’ ability to travel and provide in-person support to their natal families, but also intensified the salience of transnational connections, thereby reshaping the meanings and practices of caregiving across borders. Based on two waves of qualitative interviews conducted in Singapore—one prior to the pandemic in 2019 and the other during 2020–2021—this paper draws on interviews with 47 female marriage migrants with young children, across various socio-economic backgrounds. Positioned between two families—their marital and natal households—this paper sheds light on the complexities of how female marriage migrants navigate potent connections in their roles as migrant wives, daughters, and mothers under conditions of pandemic-induced immobility. While the pandemic imposed shared restrictions on travel for many families, it simultaneously exposed and intensified longstanding vulnerabilities and anxieties faced by many female marriage migrants, underscoring the enduring inequalities that shape their everyday and transnational lives.