%0 Journal Article %A Ana Ferrer %A David A. Green %A W. Craig Riddell %T The Effect of Literacy on Immigrant Earnings %D 2006 %R 10.3368/jhr.XLI.2.380 %J Journal of Human Resources %P 380-410 %V XLI %N 2 %X We examine the impact of literacy on immigrant earnings and the sources of lower returns to education and experience among immigrants. We find that the native-born literacy distribution dominates that for immigrants. However, the two groups obtain similar returns to literacy skills, contrary to discrimination-based explanations for immigrant—native-born earnings differentials. Among the university-educated, literacy differences account for about two-thirds of the earnings gap. However, low returns to foreign experience have a larger impact on this differential. Among the less educated, literacy differences and differences in the returns to experience have similar effects on the earnings differential. %U https://jhr.uwpress.org/content/wpjhr/XLI/2/380.full.pdf