By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-03-12 07:16:43 | Updated at 2025-03-12 12:56:05
5 hours ago
A government scheme to lure top-notch talent has brought no losses to Hong Kong, the labour minister has reiterated amid concerns that the system is being abused, saying authorities will reveal more details of the visa renewal by mid-2025.
Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han defended the scheme on Wednesday, weeks after former city leader Leung Chun-ying said that he met mainland Chinese people who came to Hong Kong through different programmes just for purposes such as facilitating their travel, enrolling their children in local schools and benefiting from tax concessions across the border.
Leung argued that these cases were contrary to the original intention of the city’s talent policy while also casting doubt over authorities’ capacity to handle applications and verify documents.
Sun said authorities had approved about 90,000 applications under the Top Talent Pass Scheme, noting that about 80,000 people had arrived in the city.
He added that he did not expect all of them to eventually settle in Hong Kong, but added that the scheme brought no loss to the city while the government was optimistic about their visa renewal.
“Hong Kong has not suffered any losses. They do not use the welfare benefits, but need to spend on staying in hotels, consuming, dining and exploring the city,” he said.
