2024 Policy Address: Hong Kong adds 13 universities to Top Talent Scheme to attract more high-calibre talents

The Hong Kong government will expand its Top Talent Scheme adding 13 more mainland Chinese and overseas universities to its eligibility list, to help build Hong Kong as an international talent hub.

The list of universities will expand to 198, while extending the validity period of the first visa of high-income talents from two years to three years, said Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, in the policy address on Wednesday. 

“Hong Kong must build a quality talent pool for development in the face of a projected shortage of 180,000 workers across different sectors in the next five years,” Lee said in the policy address.

“This policy will help Hong Kong attract a more talented young labour force, ” said Terence Chong Tai-leung, the Executive Director of the Lau Chor Tak Institute of Global Economics and Finance. 

“But some universities that are excellent in a certain professional field on the mainland are not on the list,” Chong said. “The government can continue to expand the list to these universities to bring new vitality to some of Hong Kong’s ageing industries, such as nursing and construction,” he added.

Wendy Hong Wen, 49, a Legislative Council member, said the government should attract people from the perspective of companies that need workers with special talents rather than graduates of a particular university. 

“Hong Kong lacks medical, architectural and technological talents, but it is very difficult to match the imported talents with the scarce jobs,”  she said.

The Top Talent Pass Scheme first launched in 2022, attracting people with incomes higher than HK$2.5 million or degrees from the world’s top 100 universities to apply for residency without employment.

More than 380,000 applications have been received under the scheme so far, and around 160,000 have arrived in Hong Kong with their families, Lee said.

Thea Tong, 42, working in the internet industry who graduated from the University of Science and Technology of China, emigrated to Hong Kong with her daughter under the scheme in 2024. She said it was for her own career development and her daughter’s education.

“By expanding the university list, more talents can come to Hong Kong,” Tong said. “But those who want to stay must work harder and contribute to Hong Kong's economic development in order to obtain permanent residency.”.

Chong said children's education is one of the main objectives of many talented people who come to Hong Kong.

“They bring exactly the children we need, which can help Hong Kong alleviate the problem of an ageing population,” he said.

“I hope that the scheme can set the age of dependents,“ Hong said. “This scheme allows one talent to bring his or her parents to Hong Kong, but Hong Kong is an ageing society. This puts too much pressure on the medical service.”