Communications of the ACM
Why Silicon Valley Immigrant Entrepreneurs Are Returning Home
Vivek Wadhwa, a distinguished entrepreneur and academic, weighs in on what to do about talented immigrant entrepreneurs who are returning to their home countries rather than staying in Silicon Valley. For many of these entrepreneurs, visa issues are forcing them to return to their home countries. Instead of creating hundreds of jobs in the U.S., they are creating them overseas. As a possible solution for reversing this job growth dynamic, Wadhwa suggests increasing the numbers of permanent-resident visas as well as creating a new Startup Visa for would-be entrepreneurs. The end result, says Wadhwa, would be to give the U.S. economy a significant boost at little or no cost to taxpayers.
The central issue in the debate is whether skilled immigrant entrepreneurs take jobs away from Americans, or whether they are sources of new job creation due to the new startups they are launching in Silicon Valley. At a time when the U.S. economy is struggling, entrepreneurship is booming in other countries. More than half a million doctors, scientists, researchers, and engineers in the U.S. are stuck in "immigration limbo": They are on temporary work visas and are waiting for permanent-resident visas, which are in extremely short supply. These workers can't start companies or grow deep roots in their communities. Once they get in line for a visa, they can't even accept a promotion or change jobs. They could be required to leave the U.S. immediately—without notice—if their employer lays them off. Rather than live in constant fear and stagnate in their careers, many are returning home.
U.S. immigration officials tend to interpret rules and regulations as restrictively as possible, without realizing the potential impact on competitiveness and job creation. As a result, would-be entrepreneurs are asking themselves if a better quality of life might be possible overseas. Countries from Singapore to Canada are working hard to bring techies back home as well as to attract skilled workers from other countries. At the same time, living conditions in emerging markets are increasingly attractive. These factors, taken together, are making it less likely that workers will remain in the U.S.
From TechCrunch
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