Does self-employment in the origin-country affect self-employment after migration? Evidence from Italy and Spain

According to the home-country self-employment (HCSE) hypothesis, immigrants' propensity for self-employment would depend on the diffusion of selfemployment in home country. However, previous evidence is contrasting and the studies using information on the individual experience of self-employment, rather than the self-employment rate in the origin country, are very few. Using information on the last occupation before migration for a sample of immigrants in Italy and Spain, the article shows that pre-migration self-employment experience is not associated with higher chances of employability in the destination country, but it is associated with a higher probability of being self-employed after migration. In contrast with the HCSE hypothesis, we find no relationship with the selfemployment rate in home country.