Patents and Immigration: Would Trump’s Plan Decrease Inventions?

A prominent study by two labor economists, published in 2010, suggests that the answer is yes. Prof. William Kerr (Harvard) and Prof. William Lincoln (Michigan) studied U.S. patents from 1990 through 2008. They picked these years because the “science and engineering” visa—technically called H-1B—was created in 1990.

They found clear ethnic and nationality patterns in successful patent applications. Anglo-Saxons received 63%-76% of patents in this period; Europeans received 13%-16%.

Kerr and Lincoln asked this question: How much do H-1B visa holders add—if anything—to U.S. patents?

The answer: About 10%-20%, give or take. From 2000-2008, Chinese led the way with about 8% per year of all patents, followed by about 6% by Indians, 4% by Hispanics, 3% by Russians, and 2-3% by other Asians. See the chart.

The Trump administration is already taking steps to reduce the number of H-1B visas by reducing their numbers and slowing down an already very slow process. His proposed legislation would further reduce this group of valuable contributors.

The article of this publication is “The Supply Side of Innovation: H-1B Visa Reforms and Ethnic Invention,” published in Journal of Labor Economics (2010).