100,000 applications for Hong Kong’s talent attraction schemes in first half of 2023
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong’s schemes to “snatch overseas talents,” introduced to stem an outflow of workers that has seen labour shortages in a number of sectors, have received over 100,000 applications in the first half of 2023, Chief Executive John Lee has said.
The Top Talent Pass Scheme (TTPS) – a program Lee proposed in his first Policy Address that offers fast-track Hong Kong work permits to graduates from top universities and high-earning professionals – have received over 32,000 application in the first five months since its launch last December, the Immigration Department told HKFP.
Lee delivered the 100,000 figure while speaking to reporters during his weekly press conference on Tuesday.
Around 67 per cent of the applications for the TTPS have been approved as of the end of May, the Immigration Department said.
On Wednesday, the immigration body submitted the latest figures on the city’s talent admission schemes to the Legislative Council (LegCo), revealing fewer application rejections in at least two of the major schemes.
The number of rejected applications for the scheme targeting professionals in mainland China dropped from 347 in 2021 to 144 the following year, while rejections for the General Employment Policy decreased from 909 to 362 in the same period of time.
The main reasons for rejection were that applicants did not meet the eligibility criteria, the department said, adding that the purpose behind some applications was “doubtful.”
The LegCo document also revealed that 47 applications for the TTPS were rejected within the first four days after its launch.
About 45,000 individuals who came Hong Kong through the talent admission scheme acquired the right of abode from 2018 to 2022, the department’s figures showed.
The TTPS found itself under the spotlight in February when the visa of Chinese biophysicist who was jailed for creating the world’s first gene-edited babies was revoked.
Authorities in Hong Kong later began requiring applicants for the city’s visa schemes to declare their criminal history.
The Immigration Department said on Wednesday that it would launch a criminal investigation if any person was found to have obtain a work visa by providing false information in their application, adding it did not keep the statistics on the number of applicants punished for abusing the talent admission schemes.
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