Hong Kong currently offers several major pathways for internationally mobile individuals to live, work, and eventually settle in the city: the General Employment Policy (GEP), the Top Talent Pass Scheme (TTPS), the Investment Visa (Entrepreneur), and the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme (New CIES). Many prospective applicants, particularly successful founders, senior executives, and high-net-worth individuals, find they technically qualify for more than one of these routes. The right choice usually depends on your long‑term objectives, the nature of your professional activities, and the type of presence you intend to establish in Hong Kong.
This article breaks down how each of the above-mentioned schemes works, what it takes to renew the visa following application approval, and who each of these schemes is genuinely built for.
What Is the General Employment Policy (GEP) in Hong Kong?
The GEP is one of Hong Kong’s longest-standing work visa route, and it remains the default option for professionals moving to Hong Kong with a specific job in hand. Unlike TTPS, it is entirely employer-sponsored, as no application under the GEP is possible without a confirmed job offer from a Hong Kong-registered company.
What Do You Need to Apply Under the GEP?
What you need to apply:
- A confirmed job offer for a role relevant to your qualifications or experience
- Proof of qualifications to take on the proposed role
- A remuneration package broadly in line with the Hong Kong market rate for the role
- Evidence that the sponsoring company is genuinely operating and financially sound
- Proof that the role requires skills, knowledge, or experience not readily available in the local workforce
Typically, under the GEP, the employer needs to show that the position genuinely cannot be readily filled locally unless the applicant is exempt from this requirement. In practice, this often means being prepared to document the completion of local recruitment exercise before extending a job offer to the applicant, particularly for roles outside acute skill-shortage areas.
That said, this burden has eased for certain applicants. If the role falls under Hong Kong’s Talent List or the salary is HKD 2 million or more per year, employers are generally not required to evidence local recruitment difficulty.
How Is a GEP Visa Renewed?
Renewal: GEP is typically granted for an initial period of up to 36 months, with extensions usually following a 3+3+2-year pattern. Renewals are generally straightforward where the holder remains in the same role with the same sponsoring employer and the position continues to meet the original criteria.
Who Is the GEP Best Suited For?
Best suited for: Professionals who already have a specific job offer from a Hong Kong employer, and who are comfortable with their visa status being tied to that employment relationship (a change of employer generally requires a fresh application).
Path to permanent residency: Standard — opportunity to apply for permanent residence is available after seven years of continuous ordinary residence in Hong Kong.
What Is the Top Talent Pass Scheme (TTPS) and Who Qualifies?
Launched at the end of 2022, TTPS remains the most flexible entry point into Hong Kong because it does not require a job offer, a business plan, or a fixed capital commitment at the time of application.
How Do You Qualify for the Top Talent Pass Scheme?
How you qualify (one of three categories):
- Category A — Annual taxable employment income or business income from self-owned companies of HKD 2.5 million or more in the year before applying
- Category B — Bachelor’s degree from one of the eligible universities plus at least 3 years of full-time relevant work experience over the past 5 years before applying
- Category C — Recent graduate from one of the eligible universities plus less than 3 years of full-time relevant work experience over the past 5 years before applying
What Does TTPS Renewal Require?
The renewal catch: TTPS is designed to bring talent in first and let them find their footing in Hong Kong afterward. At extension, applicants must materialize that footing by demonstrating they are either employed or actively running a business in Hong Kong. In practice, this means:
- If you do not start your own venture, you will typically need a genuine job offer or ongoing employment in Hong Kong.
- If you are self-employed, you will need to show your business is real and active, and in good financial standing to support its operation
Who Is TTPS Best Suited For?
Best suited for: professionals and executives who expect to secure employment or actively build a business in Hong Kong, and who want the fastest, least document-heavy way to get their foot in the door without committing to a specific employer or venture upfront. Read our full guide about the TTPS here.
Path to permanent residency: Standard, seven years of continuous ordinary residence.
What Is the Hong Kong Entrepreneur Visa (Investment Visa)?
The Entrepreneur Visa (formally the Investment Visa) is for individuals establishing or developing a business in Hong Kong. Unlike TTPS, there is no income threshold and no fixed minimum capital requirement, but you must convince Hong Kong Immigration both at the time of initial application and on visa renewal that your business is real, viable, and beneficial to Hong Kong.
What Do You Need to Apply for the Entrepreneur Visa?
What you need to apply:
- A detailed business plan, typically covering a five-year horizon, with realistic financial projections and staffing plan and a clear explanation of how the business will benefit Hong Kong
- Evidence of genuine operating premises
- Sufficient personal/business financial resources to support the venture development
What Does Entrepreneur Visa Renewal Require?
What renewal requires: This is where the Entrepreneur Visa is meaningfully more demanding than TTPS or New CIES. At each extension, Immigration reassesses whether the business is:
- Developing broadly as planned in the original business plan
- Creating tangible benefits for Hong Kong through revenue generation, injection of capital investment, new skills or technology brought to the local market or creation of jobs for local residents
Renewals are assessed case-by-case and are not automatic. A stalled, pivoted, or underperforming business can jeopardize the visa extension process.
Who Is the Entrepreneur Visa Best Suited For?
Best suited for: genuine founders and operators who intend to actively run and grow a company in Hong Kong, are prepared to hire locally.
Path to permanent residency: Standard — seven years of continuous ordinary residence, contingent on the business remaining active and compliant throughout.
What Is the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme (New CIES)?
New CIES takes a fundamentally different approach. Instead of assessing your job offer, income, or business plan, it's built entirely around capital investment in Hong Kong.
Applicants must have net eligible assets of at least HKD 30 million and are willing to invest at least HKD 30 million into permissible investment assets in Hong Kong, including a required HKD 3 million allocation into a portfolio overseen by the Hong Kong Investment Corporation.
Beyond the initial investment, the scheme imposes ongoing Portfolio Maintenance Requirements. Compliance with the schemes’ investment rules is verified annually, meaning that participants must continuously maintain their qualifying investments at or above the required threshold while holding their visa.
What Is Unconditional Stay Under the New CIES?
One of the defining advantages of the New CIES is its provision for unconditional stay, a feature that sets it apart from virtually all other admission schemes in Hong Kong. Under traditional pathways, applicants must complete seven years of continuous ordinary residence before qualifying for permanent residency. Yet the government recognizes that many investment‑focused applicants have business and financial interests spread across multiple countries, making full‑time physical residence in Hong Kong unrealistic.
The New CIES addresses this by allowing investors to obtain unconditional stay after maintaining seven years of qualified investment in Hong Kong. In practice, this allows New CIES investors to secure long‑term residency and enjoy the freedom to live and work in Hong Kong, even without full permanent residence status.
Who Is the New CIES Best Suited For?
Best suited for: high-net-worth individuals and family offices who want durable, low-hassle access to Hong Kong (including the ability to live, work, bank, or do business there whenever they choose) without being tied to an employer, a business plan, or a minimum number of days spent in the city each year, read out full guide about the new CIES here.
Path to permanent residency: Available after seven years of continuous ordinary residence, same as the other schemes, but uniquely, unconditional stay is available as a fallback if that residency threshold for permanent residency is not met.
| GEP | TTPS | Entrepreneur Visa | New CIES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core requirement | Confirmed job offer from a HK employer | High taxable employment or business income (at least HKD 2.5M), or degree at eligible university + experience | Viable business plan + real operations | HKD 30M net assets + HKD 30M investment |
| Job offer needed upfront? | Yes | No | No (you create the business) | No |
| Local recruitment scrutiny | Employer may need to show the role cannot be readily filled locally (waived for Talent List roles or HKD 2M+ salary) | Not applicable | Not applicable; assessed on job creation instead | Not applicable |
| What renewal depends on | Same role, same employer, criteria still met | Active employment or business in HK | Business performance, benefits to HK, job creation | Continued portfolio maintenance |
| Capital required | None | None | No fixed minimum, but should have sufficient capital to drive business operations | HKD 30 million+ |
| If 7-year residency requirement is not met | No special fallback | No special fallback | No special fallback | Unconditional stay available |
| Ideal applicant | Professional with a job offer from an HK employer in hand | Professionals planning to work or build business in HK | Entrepreneurs ready to hire locally | High net worth individuals willing to anchor part of their wealth in Hong Kong in exchange for flexible access to the territory |
Which Hong Kong Immigration Visa Route Should You Choose?
If you qualify for more than one route, the right immigration path to Hong Kong may depend on your goals and how you intend to engage with Hong Kong.
- Choose GEP if you already have a specific job offer from a Hong Kong employer, and you are comfortable having your visa application sponsored by that employer and your future Hong Kong immigration status tied to your employment in that role.
- Choose TTPS if you want the fastest, lowest-friction entry and plan to genuinely work or build a business in Hong Kong going forward.
- Choose the Entrepreneur Visa if your goal is to actually build and operate a company in Hong Kong and you are prepared to hire local staff.
- Choose New CIES if you have significant capital and you want the security of unconditional stay even if you never meet the standard seven years continuous residency requirement for permanent residency.
Whichever direction you take, Hong Kong continues to offer some of the most accessible and well-structured immigration pathways in Asia for talent, entrepreneurs, and investors alike. With the right route and the right guidance, settling into your next chapter in Hong Kong can be a smooth and rewarding journey.
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