People from overseas who wish to work in Hong Kong under employment may apply for working visa under different immigration scheme and policies such as i) General Employment Policy, ii) Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals, and iii) Technology Talent Admission Scheme.
Persons who are admitted into Hong Kong under these schemes will normally be granted an initial stay of 24 months to take such employment as approved by the Immigration Department. If there is going to be any change in employment however, they are required to seek prior approval from the Immigration Department prior to the change. Otherwise, they may breach their terms and condition of stay in Hong Kong.
Our professional team has extensive experience in successfully assisting our clients to apply visas to come to reside in Hong Kong. We understand the business and needs of our clients and give advice on application base on the strength and experience of the applicant.
There are different types of visa for people coming to Hong Kong for employment:
Anybody (except for Chinese residents of the Mainland China and nationals of Afghanistan, Cuba, Laos, Korea (Democratic People's Republic of), Nepal and Vietnam) who possess special skills, knowledge or experience of value to and not readily available in Hong Kong may apply to come to work under the GEP.
Chinese residents of the Mainland China who possess special skills, knowledge or experience of value to and not readily available in Hong Kong may apply to come to work under the ASMTP.
TechTAS provides a fast-track arrangement for eligible companies to admit non-local technology talent to undertake research and development work for them in Hong Kong. Eligible companies would first have to apply for a quota.
There are 2 channels for people who want to reside and invest in Hong Kong:
Any person (except for Chinese residents of the Mainland China) who wish to enter Hong Kong for investment by establishing or joining in business in Hong Kong can apply as Investment as Entrepreneurs. This type of application is classified under the General Employment Policy.
The applicant will need to provide a 2 year business plan covering business turnover, number of jobs created locally, introduction of new technology or skills, etc.
Persons as admitted under this scheme will normally be granted an initial stay of 24 months to establish or join in the business approved by the Immigration Department. They should seek prior approval from the Immigration Department if they wish to establish or join in business other than that approved.
Person aged 18 or above (except nationals of Afghanistan, Cuba and Democratic People's Republic of Korea) who has net assets of not less than HK$10 million throughout the 2 years preceding to application may apply to enter Hong Kong for residence under this scheme.
The applicant is required to invest within 6 months before or after the application not less than HK$10 million in Permissible Investment Asset Classes (such as equities, debt securities, certificate of deposits, subordinated debt) in Hong Kong.
* This scheme is currently suspended until further notice by the Immigration Department.
Persons admitted into Hong Kong under the following scheme may apply to bring in their spouse and unmarried depandent children under the age of 18 to Hong Kong:
All applicants admitted into Hong Kong will normally be granted an initial stay of 24 months. They may apply for extension of stay within 4 weeks before their limit of stay expires. If they continue to meet the eligibility criteria under each respective scheme, Immigration Department normally approve extension of stay following the 3-3 years pattern.
To facilitate cultural and education exchange between Hong Kong and participating countries, person aged between 18 and 30 from these participating countries with sufficient financial standings and holds medical/healthcare insurance may apply to come to Hong Kong to take up short term employment or enrol in a short study or training course.
There will be an annual quota for nationals of each participating country and qualified applicants will be approved on a first-come first-served basis.
Application quota, financial requirements, and permitted duration of stay in each employment/study will vary depending of the nationality of the applicant. In general, holder of a Working Holiday Visa may be allowed to enter Hong Kong and stay for not more than 12 months. Extension of stay will not normally be considered.
All people from overseas allowed to work or reside in Hong Kong aged 11 or above is required apply for a Hong Kong identity card. Visitors who are staying in Hong Kong for not more than 180 days are not required to apply for identity cards.
There are two types of identity card. Ordinary Hong Kong identity cards are issued to persons who are admitted to Hong Kong for a limited period of more than 180 days, such as persons with employment or student visas and the dependants of such persons. Hong Kong permanent identity cards are issued to persons with the status of Hong Kong permanent resident. Identity cards for children (aged 11-17) differ from those for adults.
People aged 15 or above is required to carry a proof of identity (i.e. the ID card, passport, etc.).
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