IMMIGRATION, INNOVATION, AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

Abstract

This paper investigates the empirical effects of immigration on economic growth in a panel dataset of 30 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries for the period from 1991 to 2015. We find no effect of immigration generally on economic growth. However, a country's foreign student share has a robust positive association with the country's economic growth rate. The results, in conjunction with recent evidence of an immigration-innovation connection, suggest that the foreign student share works through new business startups.