Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship and business creation is fundamental to a healthy economy. Companies less than five years old create an average of 1.5 million new jobs for Americans each year.† Immigrants in particular play an important role in creating jobs as they are more likely to start a new business than the rest of the population. Despite this, the United States lacks a startup visa to welcome immigrant entrepreneurs with a proven idea and solid investment. This results in many business owners struggling to stay—at a cost to our economy and its workers.
† Jason Wiens and Chris Jackson, “The Importance of Young Firms for Economic Growth,” September 13, 2015. Available online.
Reason for Reform: Entrepreneurship
New American Economy released a report detailing the outsized role immigrants play as entrepreneurs in the U.S. economy. In 2014, America’s foreign-born population owned close to three million businesses, generating over $65 billion in business income. The report draws on the American Community Survey, the Survey of Small Business Owners, and… Read More
A Look at Successful Restaurant Owner Who ‘Came Here with Nothing’
Lauro Davalos was 17 and alone when he crossed the border from Mexico. He’d graduated from the first grade only, then had to work. The United States, he’d gleefully tell people on the family farm, offered better, and he was going. After a circuitous route through… Read More
Inspired by his Refugee Parents, Cuban Entrepreneur Builds a Successful Liquor Business
When Rick Martinez’s parents sought to leave Cuba in the 1970s, the government punished Martinez’s family. Later, the regime relented and allowed them to leave with only the clothes on their backs. “I look back at everything they did, and I can’t fathom leaving my country like that,” says Martinez,… Read More
CEO of Indianapolis Power and Light Believes Immigrants Power State Economy
After graduating from university in Puerto Rico, Rafael Sanchez and his wife sold their belongings and moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, to study law – only to realize that Fort Wayne didn’t have a law school. “When you’re young and stupid, your only due diligence is, ‘Where do we know… Read More
Smart Immigration Policy a Competitive Advantage, Says South African Immigrant Entrepreneur
Greg Fisher grew up in a small town outside Johannesburg, South Africa, where he had a successful career with Deloitte and started a corporate e-learning company that hit $1 million in annual revenues before he sold it to a large consulting firm. Now, Fisher, who was recently named one of… Read More
A Former Migrant Worker Sends Young Immigrants to the Ivy League
Martin Mares has achieved something single-handedly that virtually no other person in the United States has done. He’s personally helped over 280 teenagers from Parlier, Calif. and the surrounding communities, many of them ESL students from poor immigrant families, earn acceptance into the Ivy Leagues. Over a 1,500 more of… Read More
Municipality, NAE Release Anchorage-Specific Data on New Americans’ Contributions to Local Economy
Municipality, NAE Release Anchorage-Specific Data on New Americans’ Contributions to Local Economy ANCHORAGE, AK – Today at noon, Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz, First Lady Dr. Mara Kimmel, and AEDC President Bill Popp will host a “Lunchtime Talk” to discuss the economic impacts of new Americans in Anchorage. At… Read More
Cuban Immigrant Comes Up with a Valuable Healthcare Idea for Visitors
“I’m so blessed to have been given the opportunity by this wonderful country to enter as an immigrant and build my life here,” says Cuban-born entrepreneur Ileana Thomas, the founding CEO of Medical Services Corporation (MSC), an Orlando-based company that provides medical “house calls” to tourists. Thomas had arrived in… Read More
New Americans ‘Find a Way’ to Success, says President of Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Today, Mexican immigrant Palermo Galindo is president of the Greater Fort Wayne Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Indiana and serves as the city’s community liaison officer, working with over 200 neighborhood associations. “As a person who wasn’t born in this country, this is my way to pay something back,” he… Read More
This Republican Business Owner Is Frustrated by How Long the Immigration Process Can Take
Native Ecuadorian, Republican, and conservative Christian Rosie Paulsen has dedicated much of her career to helping her fellow immigrants in Pasco County, Florida start and grow their own businesses. It’s why, in 2009, she founded the Pasco/Hernando Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. “There were a lot of international people that were… Read More
Immigrants Create American Jobs
How many jobs do immigrant entrepreneurs create? The data shows that firms owned by immigrants provide millions of jobs for U.S. workers and generate billions of dollars in annual income. With new business formation slowing in the United States, immigrant entrepreneurs have a critical role in many parts of the country, creating jobs for all Americans.
What percent of businesses are owned by immigrants?
The act of moving to another country is inherently courageous and risky. So, it comes as no surprise that immigrants tend to be more entrepreneurial than the rest of the population. In 2019, immigrant entrepreneurs made up 21.7 percent of all business owners in the United States, despite making up just over 13.6 percent of the population and 17.1 percent of the U.S. labor force.
Where Immigrants Are Most Entrepreneurial, 2019
Immigrants and the Recovery from the Great Recession
Foreign-born entrepreneurs and the jobs they created were instrumental in the recovery from the Great Recession. Between 2007 and 2011, immigrant entrepreneurs founded a large share of new businesses across the country and in several key states.
Share of New Businesses Founded by Immigrants in Select States, 2007-2011
Which Industries Are Immigrant Businesses Most Prevalent?
As important as the frequency with which immigrants start businesses is the diversity of fields in which they start them. Immigrants start more than 25 percent of all businesses in seven of the eight sectors that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects to grow the fastest over the next decade. They also play a large role in founding both Main Street businesses1 and high-tech firms.2
Sources:
1 David Dyssegaard Kallick, “Bringing Vitality to Main Street: How Immigrant Small Businesses Help Local Economies Grow,” New York: Fiscal Policy Institute and Americas Society/Council of the Americas, 2015. Available online.
2 Vivek Wadhwa et al., “America’s New Immigrant Entrepreneurs: Part I,” SSRN Scholarly Paper (Rochester, NY: Social Science Research Network, 2007). Available online.
Share of Businesses Started by Immigrant Entrepreneurs in Seven Key Sectors, 2007-2011
Immigrants Found both Main Street Businesses and High-Tech Firms
Business Ownership Among Immigrant Groups
Looking at specific ethnic and national origin groups within the immigrant population, we find that many exhibit entrepreneurship rates higher than the native-born. At right we highlight the particular contributions of Middle Eastern business owners in Detroit, a group frequently credited with helping to spur the city’s recent economic comeback.
Sources:
3 Steve Tobocman, “Guide to Immigrant Economic Development,” Welcoming America, accessed July 5, 2016. Available online.
4 New American Economy, "Reason for Reform: Entrepreneurship," October 2016. Available online.
Entrepreneurship Rates for Immigrant Subgroups, 2014
Immigrants and the Fortune 500
Consistent with past NAE research, a significant number of firms on the most recent Fortune 500 list were founded by immigrants or their children. These companies make enormous contributions to both the U.S. and global economy. They also live on beyond their founders, generating jobs and revenue long after their visionaries retire or move on.
Visa Obstacles
Currently, there is no visa for those who want to come to the United States, start a company, and create jobs for U.S. workers. To access a visa, many immigrant entrepreneurs choose to sell a majority stake in their company and then apply for a visa as a high-skilled worker rather than as the owner of the firm. Our broken H-1B visa system, however, means that many entrepreneurs cannot get a visa before the cap is exhausted each year. In 2016, the White House proposed a rule that would make it easier for entrepreneurs to remain in the country, but it is clear a more permanent, legislative fix is needed.5
Sources:
5 Issie Lapowski, “White House Proposes a New Immigration Rule for Entrepreneurs,” WIRED, accessed December 14, 2016. Available online.
6“USCIS Completes the H-1B Cap Random Selection Process for FY 2016,” USCIS, accessed December 14, 2016. Available online.
Low-Skilled Entrepreneurship
Immigrant entrepreneurs are hardly a monolithic group. While much of the attention is focused on high-skilled foreign-born entrepreneurs that drive innovation in Silicon Valley, immigrant entrepreneurs with humbler backgrounds continue to play critical roles in the U.S. economy. Founding retail shops, restaurants, and personal service businesses, these immigrant entrepreneurs help towns and cities across the United States stay vibrant. In sum, the over 2.1 million immigrant entrepreneurs with less than a college degree have a significant economic impact, creating billions of dollars in economic activity and providing jobs to thousands of Americans.
Top Industries Among Immigrant Entrepreneurs with Less than a Bachelor’s Degree, 2015
Entrepreneurship Rates of Workers in Various Demographic Groups, 2015
Business Income of Less-Skilled Immigrant Entrepreneurs, 2015
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