Immigration is the fuel of our economy
Immigrants are responsible for a significant part of the US economy: they own businesses, create jobs, pay taxes and contribute to local communities across America. In fact, immigrants start more than half of all new business in the United States, and that number is growing – so much so that immigrant entrepreneurship has become an economic mainstay.
They are an important part of our global society and economy. They send money back to family members in their countries, promoting economic growth abroad. And they also create new markets for U.S.-made goods and services, helping businesses here at home.
Immigrants create jobs and generate tax revenue for the US
The cost for providing public services to illegal immigrants is less than $2 billion per year, while illegal immigrants pay $17 billion a year in taxes and make nearly $10 trillion in consumer expenditures. The net benefit to the economy from illegal immigration is more than $8 billion annually.
US companies such as Google, Yahoo!, Intel, eBay, and many others have a significant number of employees who are immigrants. These workers are often hired because they possess unique talent (education or work experience) that native-born workers do not. Many of these immigrant workers have advanced degrees from prestigious US universities.
Immigrants are more likely to start their own businesses than native-born Americans
Immigrants are more likely to come here and start businesses. Not only do these businesses create jobs for Americans, but they also provide the employees with a great benefit: on average, immigrant-owned firms in the US pay higher wages than non-immigrant-owned firms. About 14 percent of all private-sector workers in the United States work for an immigrant-owned firm—that’s one out of every seven private-sector workers.
Immigrant entrepreneurship may have contributed significantly to America’s economic growth and job creation over the last ten years. Immigrant-owned businesses have created jobs for US-born workers and contributed to overall economic growth. Between 1997 and 2002, all companies combined added 11.2 million new jobs, of which 3.5 million were within immigrant-owned firms (27 percent).
Immigrants are a good investment for entrepreneurs, as they often need less training and have lower labor costs
Immigration to the USA has steadily increased over the past fifty years. In 1965, for example, there were 9.6 million immigrants in the US. By 2012 it had reached its peak at 43.7 million people living in America (National Geographic News). Those numbers make up 13% of the country’s current population, making them a significant part of our economy and workforce.
According to a report done by Georgia State University, “From 1990-2006 unauthorized workers added more than $5 trillion to US gross domestic product.” Additionally, immigrants tend to create their own businesses, therefore providing jobs for both themselves and native citizens. These jobs are not only technological and office-related but also agricultural laborers who typically work longer hours for lower wages.
The US wants immigrants who will work hard, learn English, and adopt American values
The US wants immigrants who will work hard, learn English, and adopt American values. They’re looking for a new wave of immigrants, more motivated than the last, one with higher education levels and more advanced degrees in technology fields that are critical to our economy — scientists, engineers, doctors, and mathematicians.
For more information, contact the nearest immigration lawyer near you.
