Illegal migration of youth to the Arab countries has become a common phenomenon forrnmost households in Ethiopia. Research emphasizing on aspects of migration in Ethiopia hasrnfocused on economic and political issues; particularly the problem of youth unemployment arernrecursively pointed out as the major reasons behind migration. However, this cannot be reliablernexplanation for immigration of Ethiopians to the Middle East unless the causes of migration arernthoroughly investigated. In the absence of detailed explanations of migration, it would have beenrnerroneous to generalize the motive of youth for immigration. Thus, this cross-sectional researchrnwith the objective of revealing causes of youth immigration, engage at exploring the roles ofrnfamily members and friends in youthâ€Ÿs immigration decision. The study participants of thisrnresearch are eight forced returnee youth from Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), eight familyrnmembers and three key informants from Kebele 03 Administration and Wore-Illu Technical andrnVocational Education and Training (TVET) College. Findings of this research indicate thatrnintersection of multiple stressors: poverty, harmful traditional practices, family breakdown andrnbeing a member of reconstituted family, pressure of family members and friends, feelings ofrninferiority and desire of independence made youth vulnerable for illegal immigration. Thernfinding unearths the roles of family members and friends at four operational phases of migrationrnwhich are in the pre-migration phase, on the journey, at the destination country and on return. Atrnthe end, the study recommends that all concerned bodies working to curb the incidence of illegalrnimmigration need to focus at micro and mezzo level intervention