Multiple-entry visa scheme for professionals from mainland China to boost Hong Kong’s innovation and technology hub ambitions, experts say
- Professionals in science, health and other fields in mainland China will be eligible for multiple-entry visas to Hong Kong and Macau under new scheme
- Scheme should help close talent gap in Hong Kong, experts say
Beijing’s multiple-entry visa scheme will make it easier for professionals from mainland China to go south, helping to close the talent gap in Hong Kong while speeding up the city’s transition into an innovation and technology (I&T) hub, experts have said.
Professionals in academia and law are also eligible for the visas, as are people in higher management.
The validity of the visas ranges from one to five years, depending on the person’s field. Successful applicants will be allowed to visit Hong Kong and Macau multiple times, but cannot stay longer than 30 days each time.
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The administration said the policy was intended to “make it more convenient” for Greater Bay Area talent to engage in scientific research and academic exchanges.
The bay area plan calls for linking Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in Guangdong province into an economic powerhouse by 2035, rivalling California’s Silicon Valley.
The multiple-entry visa scheme comes after Hong Kong’s border with mainland China fully reopened on Monday. All crossing points have resumed operation, and pre-departure polymerase chain reaction tests and the quota system have been dropped.
Professor Lau Siu-kai of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, a semi-official think tank, said the pilot scheme would enhance the exchange of talent and cooperation in the bay area and attract mainland residents to work in the city.
“This is good news for Hong Kong. The scheme will facilitate deeper cooperation between enterprises and institutions in the Greater Bay Area, especially in the Lok Ma Chau Loop at the city’s border, with more joint I&T projects being rolled out,” he said.
“There will be more mainland skilled professionals being attracted to Hong Kong. The scheme could fill the talent void in the city as mainland professionals can easily come to Hong Kong for short-term employment, tech exchanges and joint projects.”
The Lok Ma Chau Loop hosts the 87-hectare (21-acre) Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park, which is expected to boost the city’s global position and provide an incubator for start-ups.
Chinese University’s award-winning Professor Dennis Lo Yuk-ming, known for his prenatal tests for Down’s syndrome, said the scheme would expedite the process of Hong Kong developing into an international I&T hub, as envisaged by Chinese President Xi Jinping, with more joint projects between state key laboratories on both sides.
“This will enable more mainland scientists to engage in laboratory work, conduct scientific research or even teach in Hong Kong. With more scientific talent coming to the city, it will facilitate the city becoming an I&T hub,” he said.
“The state key laboratories will have more collaborations if mainland talent can come to the city easily to exchange knowledge and technology.”
Lawmaker David Lam Tzit-yuen, representing the medical sector, said the move would speed up collaborations by easing access to Hong Kong.
“This initiative will eliminate a lot of hurdles to integration. In the past, professionals from the mainland were required to apply for a visa each time they came to Hong Kong, and it usually took about a month,” he said. “This caused unnecessary delays to the medical or scientific study.”
Alex Mak Wing-chung, a researcher at Our Hong Kong Foundation, said the measure showed Beijing’s support for the development of eight international centres in the city outlined in the 14th five-year plan, such as turning Hong Kong into an I&T hub.
“This is the supporting measure to facilitate talent exchange and cooperation between Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area,” he said. ‘This will make coming to Hong Kong more convenient for mainland professionals, and it might entice them to stay.”
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Economist Simon Lee Siu-po, an honorary fellow at the Asia-Pacific Institute of Business at Chinese University, said Hong Kong could raise its competitiveness by attracting mainland talent to fill its talent gap.
“The cost of hiring mainland residents will be lower,” he said. “Chinese youth are now faced with a high jobless rate, and the city could provide ample opportunities for young talent to get working experience.”
Hong Kong introduced schemes last year to combat an intensifying brain drain fuelled by Covid-19 restrictions and emigration waves, offering a two-year work visa to those earning at least HK$2.5 million (US$318,480) a year or graduates of the world’s top 100 universities with at least three years of experience.
According to official data, the city’s workforce shrank by about 140,000 in two years from 2020 to 2022.
The government said eligible candidates for the new visas could take part in designated short-term activities as visitors without the need to apply for employment entry permits.
“[The scheme] will help promote the interaction of talent within the Greater Bay Area, creating stronger impetus for growth for Hong Kong and the entire Greater Bay Area as well as achieving a win-win situation,” it said.
The government would continue to liaise closely with mainland authorities to further enhance talent exchanges and interactions in the bay area, it added.
