Hong Kong verifies 47 applications under new investment visa scheme, with each one investing HK$30 million in the city
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong has verified 47 applications under a new investment visa scheme launched six months ago, each one having already made an investment of HK$30 million in the city.
Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK), a government department focused on foreign direct investment, announced on Monday that a total of 500 applications have been received under the investment visa scheme since its roll-out in March 1.
Among the applications, 448 people’s assets have been verified. According to the scheme, any application should have net assets of no less than HK$30 million over the previous two years before the application.
Following the verification process, 47 people invested at least HK$30 million each in the city, meaning their visas were pending approval from the Immigration Department.
The department did not disclose the number of visas that had been approved, nor where the applicants were from. HKFP has reached out to inquire.
Hong Kong launched the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme to allow foreign nationals – and residents of Taiwan, Macau and mainland China “that have obtained permanent resident status in a foreign country” – to be granted a two-year visa if they invest at least HK$30 million in permissible assets in the city.
InvestHK announced on Monday that considering a total of 500 applications, the scheme was expected to bring the city over HK$15 billion.
According to the scheme, investments can be made as in areas such as non-residential real estate or financial products. Those who successfully renew their visa and continue to live in Hong Kong for seven years can later apply to become permanent residents of the city.
Most applications from Vanuatu, Guinea-Bissau
Earlier in June, the government announced that as of the end of May, it had received 251 applications – most of them from residents of the South Pacific island nation Vanuatu and Guinea-Bissau, in West Africa.
The figure sparked debate after a financial commentator said on Facebook that the reason so many residents of Vanuatu and Guinea-Bissau had applied for Hong Kong’s immigration scheme was perhaps because some Chinese nationals had gained permanent residency in “small countries.”
With a population of around 2.1 million, Guinea-Bissau’s per capita gross domestic product (GDP) was approximately US$775 in 2022, according to the World Bank. Vanuatu, with a population of around 326,000, had a GDP per capita of US$3,231 in 2022.
Authorities have not released updated information about where applicants under the investment visa scheme came from since then.
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