Self-Employment and Migration: Evidence from Mexico

Alejandro Gutierrez-Li

AEA Papers and Proceedings, 2022, vol. 112, 361-65

Abstract: Mexico has one of the highest self-employment rates in the OECD. I study the relationship between business ownership and migration from Mexico to the United States using longitudinal data from the Mexican Migration Project (MMP). I find that the self-employed have a substantially lower probability of moving north, either legally or illegally. Although running a business could allow a person to finance a costly trip to the US, it also raises the opportunity costs of leaving and the nonpecuniary benefits of staying at home. The findings highlight the role of self-employment in a developing country in the likelihood of emigration.

JEL-codes: J15 J23 J61 O15 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20221112

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