Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu (second right), speaks at a press briefing to announce the details of the new Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, Dec 19, 2023, as Deputy Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury (Financial Services), Manda Chan (second left); Director-General of Investment Promotion, Alpha Lau (first right); and Assistant Director of Immigration (Visa and Policies), Ching Wo-mok (first left) listen. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVT)

HONG KONG – The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government on Tuesday announced details of the new Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, or CIES, which it aims to officially launch and invite applications for in mid-2024.

“The new CIES would help strengthen the development of the asset and wealth management, financial and related professional service sectors in Hong Kong, and bring more business opportunities and high-quality job prospects to all segments of the industry's service chain,” Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu said at a press briefing.

The new scheme will accept applications from eligible persons aged 18 or above, including foreign nationals, Chinese nationals who have obtained permanent resident status in a foreign country, Macao Special Administrative Region residents and Chinese residents of Taiwan. 

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An applicant must demonstrate that he or she has been absolutely beneficially entitled to net assets of not less than HK$30 million throughout the two years preceding application, the government said in a statement. 

The new portfolio will be set up and managed by the Hong Kong Investment Corporation to make investments in companies or projects with a Hong Kong nexus

The applicant must invest a minimum of HK$30 million in permissible investment assets, including a minimum of HK$27 million in assets such as equities, debt securities, certificates of deposit, subordinated debt, eligible collective investment schemes, limited partnership funds or non-residential real estate, and HK$3 million that will be invested in a new CIES investment portfolio, it added.

The new portfolio will be set up and managed by the Hong Kong Investment Corporation to make investments in companies or projects with a Hong Kong nexus, with a view to supporting the development of innovation and technology industries and other strategic industries that are beneficial to the long-term development of the city's economy, the bureau explained.

Regarding the inclusion of a tech portfolio, Hui said it is very much in line with the new scheme’s overall objective of benefiting the city’s real economy.

“If you look at the Policy Address and the Budget, I think one of the key emphases of ours is to make Hong Kong (an) innovation hub,” he said. “That is why, by including that, we believe and also consider that it will be beneficial to the real economy of Hong Kong. That is number one.”

While the new scheme requests a minimum investment of HK$30 million, compared to HK$10 million in the previous scheme, the secretary said the new scheme should be compared to other similar schemes in the market right now that are on the same timeline.

“Ours is rather competitive in terms of the threshold and also in terms of the general offering that we try to include in the overall portfolio … So all in all, we are confident that this scheme will be attractive to people who are interested in pursuing it,” he added.

Upon successful application, an applicant may bring his or her dependents, including a spouse and unmarried dependent children aged under 18 years, to Hong Kong. Permission to stay will normally be granted for not more than two years. 

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After the first two years, they may apply for an extension of stay of not more than three years, and may subsequently apply for further extensions of not more than three years upon the expiry of each three-year period. 

Upon a period of continuous ordinary residence in Hong Kong of not less than seven years, they may apply to become Hong Kong permanent residents.