Hong Kong eases restrictions on immigration
24/2/2008 11:06
Hong Kong will liberalize its immigration regime to make it easier for
non-local graduates to stay and work there, a Hong Kong immigration official
said yesterday.
There are many schemes to attract mainland and overseas
talent, said Helen Chan, assistant director of Immigration of the Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region Government.
From the 2008-09 school year,
non-local graduates who have obtained a degree or higher qualification in a
full-time program in Hong Kong, upon application to the Immigration Department,
may be granted 12 months¨ªstay without any condition and are free to take up any
jobs, she said.
But the stringent assessment criteria for the Quality
Migrant Admission Scheme applicants remain in place.
The scheme was
revised in January to enable more mainland and overseas quality migrants to be
short-listed, particularly younger ones, in view of Hong Kong¨ªs aging
population. Its annual quota of 1,000 entrants stands.
Xinhua
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