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Can skilled immigration raise innovation? Evidence from Canadian Cities
[Explaining the deteriorating entry earnings of Canada’s immigrant cohorts: 1966-2000]

Author

Listed:
  • Joel Blit
  • Mikal Skuterud
  • Jue Zhang

Abstract

We examine the effect of changes in skilled-immigrant population shares in 98 Canadian cities on per capita patents. The Canadian case is of interest because its ‘points system’ is viewed as a model of skilled immigration policy. Our estimates suggest that the impact of increasing the university-educated immigrant share on patenting rates is modest at best and unambiguously smaller than the impact of skilled immigrants in the USA. We find larger effects of Canadian science, engineering, technology or mathematics (STEM)-educated immigrants employed in STEM jobs, but this impact is limited because only one-third of Canadian STEM-educated immigrants are employed in STEM jobs, compared with two-fifths of native-born Canadians and one-half of US immigrants. Our findings suggest that for most countries, skilled immigration is unlikely to be a panacea for sluggish innovation and that the US experience may be exceptional.

Suggested Citation

  • Joel Blit & Mikal Skuterud & Jue Zhang, 2020. "Can skilled immigration raise innovation? Evidence from Canadian Cities [Explaining the deteriorating entry earnings of Canada’s immigrant cohorts: 1966-2000]," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 20(4), pages 879-901.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:jecgeo:v:20:y:2020:i:4:p:879-901.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/jeg/lbz029
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Anthony Edo & Lionel Ragot & Hillel Rapoport & Sulin Sardoschau & Andreas Steinmayr & Arthur Sweetman, 2020. "An introduction to the economics of immigration in OECD countries," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 53(4), pages 1365-1403, November.
    2. 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).
    3. Matthias Niggli, 2023. "‘Moving On’—investigating inventors’ ethnic origins using supervised learning," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 23(4), pages 921-947.
    4. Bolortuya Enkhtaivan & Jorge Brusa & Zagdbazar Davaadorj, 2020. "A Gap in Brain Gain for Emerging Countries: Evidence of International Immigration on Non-Resident Patents," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-23, December.
    5. Matthias Niggli, 2023. "‘Moving On’—investigating inventors’ ethnic origins using supervised learning," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 23(4), pages 921-947.
    6. Anna Boucher & Robert Breunig & Cecilia Karmel, 2022. "A Preliminary Literature Review on the Effect of Immigration On Australian Domestic Employment and Wages," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 55(2), pages 263-272, June.
    7. Iain Cockburn & Megan MacGarvie & John McKeon, 2023. "Canada’s Patent Productivity Paradox: Recent Trends and Implications for Future Productivity Growth," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 45, pages 120-154, Fall.
    8. Ceren Ozgen, 2021. "The economics of diversity: Innovation, productivity and the labour market," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(4), pages 1168-1216, September.
    9. Doyle, Matthew & Skuterud, Mikal & Worswick, Christopher, 2023. "The economics of Canadian immigration levels," CLEF Working Paper Series 58, Canadian Labour Economics Forum (CLEF), University of Waterloo.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Immigration; innovation; immigration policy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy
    • O38 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Government Policy

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