AIDING INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP THROUGH MIGRATION POLICY: A VIEW FROM AUSTRALIA

KHANH HOANG

Abstract:

In recent years, there has been significant interest in the role of migration policy in aiding innovation, entrepreneurship and economic growth. The weight of academic literature points to a positive relationship between migration and innovation. Several countries, including Australia, Canada, the US and Singapore have sought to leverage this relationship by establishing various visas aimed at attracting migrant entrepreneurs and monetary investment from high net worth individuals to support their innovation systems. This paper analyses the effectiveness of Australia’s migration policies in strengthening its innovation system and asks what, if anything, could be done differently. Two key areas of the innovation system that could be addressed through migration policy are identified: increasing the pool of venture capital in Australia and attracting more migrants with entrepreneurial talent. Established in 2012, Australia’s Business Innovation and Investment Programme (BIIP) contains a range of visas aimed at attracting entrepreneurs and investment from high net worth individuals but has largely failed to address the needs of the innovation system. Drawing upon experiences of other jurisdictions and evidence from internal stakeholders, this paper suggests a range of reforms to the BIIP that would better align migration and innovation policy in Australia. Whilst approaches to the innovation and migration nexus will differ from economy to economy, Australia’s experiences may provide valuable lessons for other countries seeking to establish similar visa programs.

Keywords:
migration, innovation, entrepreneurship, government policy, economics

DOI: 10.52950/SS.2015.4.3.005

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APA citation:
KHANH HOANG (2015). Aiding innovation and entrepreneurship through migration policy: A view from Australia. International Journal of Social Sciences, Vol. IV(3), pp. 59-81. , DOI: 10.52950/SS.2015.4.3.005

Data:
Received: 19 May 2015
Revised: 9 Jul 2015
Accepted: 6 Aug 2015
Published: 20 Aug 2015


Copyright © 2015, Khanh Hoang et al, khanh.hoang@anu.edu.au