Budget 2025: Talent admission schemes receive over 430,000 applications

Various talent admission schemes have received more than 430,000 applications and approved more than 270,000 by the end of last year, said Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po in the budget address today.   

“The budget is set to attract  international talent and nurture local talent, reinforcing the city’s status as an international hub for high‑calibre talent,” Chan said.

So far, 180,000 talents have arrived in Hong Kong since the scheme started two years ago.

The budget also said Hong Kong will host the upcoming global talent summit early next year, and the government will introduce a scholarship targeting students from ASEAN and Belt & Road regions. 

“This equates to 10,000 new arrivals per month,” said Shang Hailong, Member of the Legislative Council and founder of the Top Talent Service Association. He added that because so many talents have arrived, some may have trouble finding jobs at first. 

Wan Jiachen, 26, settled in Hong Kong two years ago through the Top Talent Pass Scheme after graduating from Columbia University in the United States. It took him a few months to find work.

“The house rent is really expensive and the cost of living is actually quite high,” said Wan, who found a job with the Bank of China. “It would be better if the government could arrange more similar accommodation for foreign talents or provide rental subsidies for foreign talents.” 

“It is hard to provide direct fiscal support for talents like housing welfare,” said Shang. “Because the median wage level of top talents is HK$50,000, which surpasses the requirements of incentives set for assisting local residents.” 

Non-local students who graduate from five of the city’s universities are also eligible for the top talent visa. Some of these students said it has been difficult to find a job in Hong Kong.

“Hong Kong has too few jobs and too many people, and wages are relatively low. I experienced submitting around 100 resumes over three to five months before finally securing a job,” said Stephy Zhang, who graduated from Hong Kong University, majoring in social science.

“At first, I did not think it would be hard to find a job because I graduated from the University of Hong Kong,” said Zhang. “But I began to doubt myself as I watched job advertisements day after day.” 

“The competition for jobs among my peers is indeed very intense, which makes me not want to enter the fierce job market competition at the moment,” said Yin Haijie, who is about to complete her master's degree at the University of Hong Kong.  

Zhang said that while waiting for job offers, she still had to bear high rent and life costs, which somewhat dissuaded talents who wanted to stay in Hong Kong. 

“I plan to leave Hong Kong if I don’t receive an offer by the end of the lease,” she added.