TALENT AND MIGRATION PLANS REFINED

The Government today launched three measures to enhance the Top Talent Pass Scheme (TTPS) and the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme (QMAS), following the announcement of reforms to the talent admission regime in the 2024 Policy Address.

The first measure calls for expanding the list of eligible universities under the TTPS. Thirteen top Mainland and overseas universities/institutions have been added to the list, making a total of 198 eligible schools.

The newly added universities/institutions include nine Mainland universities ranked from 11th to 20th under the Shanghai Jiao Tong University Best Chinese Universities Ranking in the past five years, but have yet to be included in the original list of eligible universities.

They also cover four top-five specialised institutions on the QS World University Rankings in the discipline of "Art & Design" in the past five years, namely, Royal College of Art; University of the Arts London; Parsons School of Design, The New School; and Rhode Island School of Design.

The second measure entails extending the validity period of the first visas of Category A applications under the TTPS, ie applicants with an annual income reaching $2.5 million or above in the year immediately preceding the date of application.

For the applicants with approval given from October 16, the day the 2024 Policy Address was announced, the validity period of their first visa has been extended to three years to facilitate their planning to move to Hong Kong with their families.

The new measure also applies to around 21,000 Category A applicants whose applications were approved before the announcement of the 2024 Policy Address. They may, from today onwards, apply to the Immigration Department within three months before their limit of stay expires, and will be granted extension of stay for one year unconditionally.

If they have secured offers of employment, or have established or joined in a business in Hong Kong upon applying for an extension, they may be granted an extension of stay for up to three years after submitting relevant proof.

The last measure involves enhancing the assessment criteria and arrangements of the General Points Test under the QMAS.

Starting today, the General Points Test (GPT) under the QMAS has been enhanced by adopting a more objective and clear scoring criteria, and streamlining the application and selection process. The enhanced GPT replaces the original item-by-item scoring system with an assessment questionnaire.

Applicants should confirm if they meet the 12 assessment criteria in the questionnaire under six major aspects, namely age, academic qualifications, language proficiency, work experience, annual income and business ownership, and submit supporting documents.

The applicants can submit applications if they meet at least six assessment criteria. The Immigration Department will pass the eligible applications to a newly established assessment panel for further selection.

The assessment panel, chaired by the Secretary for Labour & Welfare with other relevant bureau secretaries as members, will provide advice to the Director of Immigration for his approval decision, based on the deliberation outcome.

There will be no annual quotas under the enhanced GPT. For applications submitted under the original GPT before the implementation of the enhancement measures, the department will continue the processing in accordance with the original criteria and procedures, and conclude the assessment as soon as possible.

The electronic application platform for the enhanced GPT has commenced operation. For enquiries, contact the Immigration Department’s enquiry hotline: 2824 6111, fax to: 2877 7711 or email to: enquiry@immd.gov.hk.

Secretary of Labour & Welfare Chris Sun said that since the new talent admission regime was implemented at the end of 2022, over 380,000 applications have been received, with nearly 24, 000 applications approved. Additionally, around 160,000 people of talent have arrived in Hong Kong with their families.

“The enhancement measures implemented today will help further attract talent conducive to Hong Kong's development, enrich the local talent pool, enhance Hong Kong's competitiveness in the quest for talent, and consolidate Hong Kong's status as an international talent hub," he added.

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