IMMIGRANTS AND PATENTS

 

Published by El Nuevo Herald on April 26, 2013

 

Dr. Jennifer Hunt recently received the "American Economic Journal" by better macroeconomic research in 2013. Their research found that immigrants in the U.S. registered patent almost double compared with the native Americans. Chief Economist of the Department of Labor, Dr Hunt is an electrical engineer from MIT and has a Ph.D in economics from Harvard University.

A calculation made in 1990-2000, when the registration of patents increased by 63%, indicates that the participation of academically qualified immigrants, had been instrumental in this increase.

 

Unquestionably this is a guarantee for immigrants, but the immigration problem has no easy solution.

Since many years before, the 1992 Nobel in Economics, Professor Gary Becker, proposed an economic solution type regulating immigrants. He proposed to create a kind of market where U.S. immigration will announce the sale of a certain number of visas, which naturally would fix price on or throughout market demand for candidates who would be willing to offer more money for a higher option. Sell ​​this right to emigrate would not discriminate against the poor, although obviously will favor the wealthiest. It is estimated that U.S. will

receive a minimum of $ 12,000 million annually for this purpose, which would provide further evidence of the benefits of immigration.

Currently,  it is in the phase of Hearings in the Senate, a bipartisan Reform supported by eight Senators. The reform had a period of 13 years to legalize eleven million illegal immigrants living in the U.S.

Its implementation could be delayed due to process the Interim Immigrant status (RPI), previously must be started a plan of border security and the construction of a wall along the southern border.

In addition, the reform itself has a number of requirements that may hinder its rapid implementation. For example, to achieve permanent residence, the alien must prove continuous physical presence in the U.S. since December 2011, pay a fine of $ 1,000, have filed your taxes and know English and History of the United States. This not free from controversy.

Many day laborers and domestic workers have no evidence of how long they have been in the U.S.

Still, the reform have a very positive aspect: Set aside 40% of the visas to work purposes for those highly skilled immigrants or college graduate. And it is precisely this segment who keeps  U.S. at the top of the tech world, as is proven by the larger number of patents registered by them. !

Welcome!

BENJAMIN F. DeYURREEconomist and Journalist