The government is considering lowering the entry requirements for its new Top Talent Pass Scheme, in order to allow in more graduates from China who may not have attended one of the world’s top 100 universities, Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun has said.
The visa programme was introduced by Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee last October. It allows high-earners- and recent graduates from the world’s top 100 tertiary institutions with some work experience – to obtain two-year visas without first having to secure a job offer.
Sun said in an interview with Sing Tao Daily on Wednesday that guidelines may be updated to attract candidates from international institutions offering specialised programmes, or those from top mainland universities, to apply: “Some top mainland universities are not included in the list of the world’s 100 top universities for various reasons, but their academic abilities and reputations are impressive, or even better than [some in] the top 100 universities.”
He added that the current top 100 list was based on overall rankings. Some institutions were not comprehensive universities covering all academic disciplines, but they provided some specialised subjects. The authorities are therefore considering whether it is possible to include their graduates in the scheme.
He said the suggestions were to “attract the best talents in the world to the scheme.”
Mostly mainland Chinese
However, local media reported on June 30 that the Immigration Department has said that almost 95 per cent of successful applicants – 20,378 of them – were from the mainland.
In all, the department received applications from 32,040 people and 67 per cent of them, or 21,494, were approved between December 28 last year and May 31 this year.
When asked by Sing Tao Daily whether the scheme was unattractive to those overseas, Sun said it was because there was a “great promotion” for the programme across the mainland. In addition, mainland Chinese “knew better about Hong Kong.”
He added that there was a majority of mainland applicants who had studied overseas, adding that they were “excellent talents” and Hong Kong should welcome them.
Sun said that the Labour and Welfare Bureau had begun research on local manpower forecasts and hopes to release preliminary results in the third quarter of next year. The final results may be announced in the first quarter of 2025 at the earliest.
He said the research would cover major industries including tourism, healthcare and construction – and would consider 80 per cent of their employees.
Scheme under controversies
The Top Talent Pass Scheme came under fire this year after an application was approved for a controversial scientist who produced genetically edited babies. He was jailed in mainland China for violating medical regulations. His application was later rejected by the Hong Kong authorities.
The Immigration Department later started requiring visa applicants who use talent admission schemes to declare any prior criminal convictions.
In a response to HKFP’s enquiry, the Bureau of Labour and Welfare said: “The Government is reviewing the list of eligible universities under the Top Talent Pass Scheme to include more outstanding universities or institutions around the world to entice and facilitate more quality talents to come to Hong Kong.” They said that details will be announced when available.
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