As debates about immigration intensify, particularly in the U.S. and Western Europe, countries should consider that many entrepreneurial migrants are job creators. Given this, should societies be so quick to hang “keep out” signs?

A 2012 study based on Current Population Survey (CPS) data from the U.S. Census Bureau, found that migrants are more likely to start a business in any given month in the U.S. According to this study, in 2010, for every 100,000 immigrants, 620 started businesses each month. The rate for native-born adults, however, was much lower, at 280 new startups per 100,000.

The study also found that the existing business-ownership rate is higher for migrants than native-born adults in America: 10.5% of the migrant workforce own a business, compared with 9.3% of the native-born labor force.

A similar study in 2011 by Partnership for a New American Economy found that migrants or their children founded more than 40% of the 2010 Fortune 500 companies in the U.S.

Historically, the U.S. has been able to attract numerous foreign business builders. But does this same pattern emerge for the rest of the world? Gallup’s Builder […]