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Are Immigrants Particularly Entrepreneurial? Policy Lessons from a Selective Immigration System

Author

Listed:
  • Green, David A.

    (University of British Columbia, Vancouver)

  • Liu, Huju

    (Statistics Canada)

  • Ostrovsky, Yuri

    (Statistics Canada)

  • Picot, Garnett

    (Institute for Research on Public Policy, and Research and Evaluation Branch, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada)

Abstract

Firm ownership is a dening feature of immigrant adaptation: 41% of immigrants own a firm at some point in their first 10 years post-arrival. We use Canadian data linking immigrant arrival records with individual and firm tax data to examine the process of entering firm ownership for immigrants. Higher immigrant firm ownership rates are mainly due to nonincorporated firm ownership, which looks like a last resort. Human capital plays no role in the opening of preferable, incorporated firms. Immigrants are not more entrepreneurial in terms of opening incorporated firms with employees, and standard policy levers appear to have limited effects.

Suggested Citation

  • Green, David A. & Liu, Huju & Ostrovsky, Yuri & Picot, Garnett, 2023. "Are Immigrants Particularly Entrepreneurial? Policy Lessons from a Selective Immigration System," IZA Discussion Papers 16515, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16515
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    immigration; entrepreneurs; human capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers

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    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

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