Migration Policy and Innovation Progress: A Patent-Based Analysis on Skilled Migration in EU, Italy and Germany

The international mobility of highly skilled individuals has become an increasingly influential force in shaping innovation systems and economic development across advanced economies. While the role of migration in facilitating knowledge transfer is well-documented, the specific contribution of foreign inventors to patent activity—and, by extension, to national innovation performance—remains a relatively underexamined area of inquiry. This thesis investigates the intersection of migration, innovation, and policy by analyzing how foreign inventors participate in and contribute to the patent landscape of the European scenario, with a particular focus on the European Union, Italy, and Germany. The research is structured around three core hypotheses. The Foreign Inventorship Contribution Hypothesis examines the share of patents attributable to non-national inventors, using patent family jurisdiction data to infer transnational patterns of innovation. The Policy Impact Hypothesis explores whether targeted policy interventions—such as skilled migration schemes and innovation support programs—are temporally associated with increases in foreign inventorship. Finally, the Immigration-Innovation Correlation Hypothesis assesses whether inventive migration correlates with broader immigration trends or follows an independent trajectory. Adopting a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative patent data with an in-depth analysis of relevant policy frameworks, this thesis seeks to understand how national strategies influence the capacity to attract and retain inventive talent. In doing so, it contributes to a deeper understanding of how mobility-driven innovation can be leveraged as a strategic advantage in an increasingly competitive global knowledge economy.