Gabriel Chaves Bosch

Welcome to my webpage!

My name is Gabriel and I am a 4th year PhD student in Economics at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). My main fields of interest are labour and public economics.

My current research focuses on the impact of immigration on local labour markets, public finances and innovation. In my papers, I use administrative data from Spain and Australia.

Before joining QMUL, I completed a MSc in Economics in the Barcelona School of Economics and an undergraduate degree in International Business Economics at Universitat Pompeu Fabra.

You can find my CV here.

You can contact me at g.chavesbosch@qmul.ac.uk

Academic research

Moving to Create Opportunity: The Impact of Immigration on Native Entrepreneurship (draft)

Abstract: This paper examines the impact of immigration on native entrepreneurship using rich social security data and a unique immigration episode in Spain. Using variation across local industries and employing a shift-share instrumental variable for identification, I find that immigration has a positive effect on native entrepreneurship. The effect is primarily driven by the entry of new native entrepreneurs transitioning from wage work, who tend to have above-median levels of education, previous wages and occupational skill. I propose and calibrate a model of occupational choice and immigration to rationalise the findings. The main mechanism driving the increase in native entrepreneurship is that an immigrant-induced labour supply shock lowers immigrant wages, which increases potential entrepreneurial profits, particularly among skilled natives.
Presented at (*scheduled): Warwick PhD Conference (June 2025*), EAYE (May 2025*), 6th EBRD/Kings Workshop on the Economics and Politics of Migration (May 2025*), SAEe 2024 (December 2024), Tor Vergata PhD conference (September 2024), RIEF network (April 2024), CEPR Paris Symposium (December 2023), Junior Research Day KCL (November 2023), SITES Naples (September 2023), Essex PhD Conference (March 2023), The Economics of Migration Junior Seminar (March 2023), QMUL Internal Seminar (2023, 2024, 2025).

Immigration from Richer Countries and Local Public Finances: Evidence from Spanish municipalities (draft)

Abstract: Do immigrants from higher-income countries improve local public finances? Due to population ageing and the rise of remote work, municipalities may want to attract wealthy immigrants to stimulate the local economy and public finances. However, a higher burden on public services may offset these gains. Using data from Spanish municipalities and employing a shift-share instrument for identification, I find that a one percentage point increase in the local population due to immigration from higher-income countries leads to around a 1.5% decrease in both per-capita expenditure and revenues. This is driven by a positive impact on total local population, but no impact on total local government revenues or expenditures. I argue seasonal residency patterns limit local demand and weaken the fiscal benefits of immigration. In support for this hypothesis, I find that an increase in the number of immigrants from higher-income countries leads to (i) increases in indicators of seasonal residence, (ii) reductions of overall employment but increased employment volatility, and (iii) lower revenues from tax items sensitive to local consumption, with no significant impact on total revenues.
Presented at: Junior Research Day UCL (November 2024).

Policy research

Migration and regional innovation in Australia, joint with Cem Ozguzel and Jasper Hesse (OECD working paper)

Abstract: This paper provides evidence on the impact of international migrants on regional innovation. The study combines administrative individual-level data covering all Australian residents with data on intellectual property rights applications such as patents, trademarks, and design rights. The analysis uses a standard shift-share instrument based on past migrant settlements to identify the causal effects of migration on innovation. Its four main findings are the following: First, on average, a one percentage point increase in the regional employment share of higher-educated migrants relative to total employment leads to a 4.8% rise in regional patent applications in the medium run (five years). Second, while migrants of all skill and education levels have a positive impact on patenting, those in scientific occupations have the largest effect. Third, regions with lower levels of patenting benefit relatively more from increases in migration compared to those with higher patenting levels. Fourth, there is no effect of migration on trademarks or design rights applications.

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