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Capital Investment Entrant Scheme
Introduction
The Immigration Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Immigration Department) may revise the information according to changes in circumstances without prior notice. Any person who wishes to submit application under the Scheme may make enquiry with the Immigration Department for up-to-date information.
Objective
The objective of the Scheme is to facilitate the entry for residence by capital investment entrants (the entrant), i.e. persons who make capital investment in Hong Kong but would not be engaged in the running of any business here. The entrant is allowed to make his choice of investments amongst permissible assets without the need to establish or join in a business.
Scope of the Scheme
The Scheme is applicable to
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(a)
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foreign nationals (except nationals of Afghanistan, Albania, Cuba and Democratic People's Republic of Korea);
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(b)
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Macao Special Administrative Region (Macao SAR) residents;
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(c)
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Chinese nationals who have obtained permanent resident status in a foreign country;
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(d)
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stateless persons who have obtained permanent resident status in a foreign country with proven re-entry facilities; and
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(e)
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Taiwan residents.
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Eligibility Criteria
To qualify for admission under the Scheme, the entrant must :
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(a)
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be aged 18 or above when applying for entry under the Scheme;
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(b)
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have net assets of not less than HK$6.5 million to which he is absolutely beneficially entitled throughout the two years preceding his application* ;
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(c)
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have invested within six months before submission of his application to the Immigration Department, or will invest within six months after the granting of approval in principle by the Immigration Department, not less than HK$6.5 million in permissible investment asset classes (except Certificates of Deposit which must be invested within the latter period) as detailed in page "Permissible Investment Asset Classes";
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(d)
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have no adverse record both in Hong Kong and country/region of residence; and
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(e)
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be able to demonstrate that he is capable of supporting and accommodating himself and his dependants, if any, on his own without relying on any return on the permissible investment assets, employment or public assistance in Hong Kong.
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* The entrant may at his own cost engage a Certified Public Accountant(Practising) to assist in demonstrating his fulfillment of this requirement. For details, please refer to "New Arrangement of Engaging a Certified Public Accountant (Practising)".
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New Arrangement of Engaging a Certified Public Accountant (Practising)
As set out in paragraph 2.1(b) of the Rules for the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme ["the Scheme Rules"], an Applicant has to meet the eligibility criteria, among others, that he has Net assets or Net equity to which he is absolutely beneficially entitled with a Market value of not less than HK$6.5 million Net throughout the two years preceding the date he lodged his application for Approval-in-Principle or Formal Approval.
To streamline the procedure and to shorten the processing time, with effect from 16 March 2009, applicants under the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme [CIES] may at their own cost engage a Certified Public Accountant (Practising) [CPA (Practising)] who is a member of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants to issue a report to demonstrate that they meet the requirement of paragraph 2.1(b) of the Scheme Rules. The report may be submitted to the Immigration Department together with the CIES application form. This is an optional arrangement and whether or not a CPA (Practising) is engaged will not affect the outcome of the application. The new arrangement is also applicable to applications submitted before the implementation date.
Permissible Investment Asset Classes
The entrant should invest not less than HK$6.5 million in either or both of the following two permissible investment asset classes:
(I) Real estate
The entrant may invest in commercial, industrial or residential properties, including land and pre-completion properties in Hong Kong. There is no restriction on the number of properties bought for the purpose of the Scheme.
(II) Financial assets
The entrant may invest in one or a combination of the following types of financial assets:
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(A)
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Equities - shares of companies that are listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and traded in Hong Kong dollars.
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(B)
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Debt securities - denominated in Hong Kong dollars including fixed or floating rate instruments and convertible bonds which are issued or fully guaranteed by the HKSAR Government, the Exchange Fund, the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation, MTR Corporation Limited, Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, Hong Kong Airport Authority and other corporations, agencies or bodies wholly or partly owned by the HKSAR Government as may be specified from time to time; or by companies referred to under (A) above.
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(C)
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Certificates of Deposits - denominated in Hong Kong dollars issued by authorized institutions as defined in the Banking Ordinance with a remaining term to maturity of not less than twelve months at the time of purchase (such purchase should take place after approval in principle has been given by the Immigration Department for the entrant to join the Scheme and that such instruments, on reaching maturity, should be replaced by Certificates of Deposits with a remaining term to maturity of not less than twelve months or by assets in other permissible investment asset classes).
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(D)
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Subordinated debt - denominated in Hong Kong dollars issued by authorized institutions under paragraphs 3(k) and 3(m) of the 3rd Schedule to the Banking Ordinance.
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(E)
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Eligible Collective Investment Schemes
Note - for the purpose of the Scheme as published and updated in the Immigration Department's website from time to time (Click here for the list).
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Permissible Investment Asset Classes listed above are subject to change without prior notice. Entrants who wish to submit applications under the Scheme may refer to the Immigration Department's website regularly for up-to-date information.
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Note
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An Eligible Collective Investment Scheme under the Scheme should be managed by a corporation licensed under Part V of the Securities and Futures Ordinance and invested as to at least 70% of its average net assets in permissible investment assets as specified in paragraphs (I) or (II) (A) - (D) above. An Eligible Collective Investment Scheme may be domiciled in Hong Kong or elsewhere, but it must be denominated in Hong Kong dollars and it must be a fund authorized by the Securities and Futures Commission for sale to the public in Hong Kong.
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.Portfolio Maintenance Requirement
Portfolio maintenance and ring-fencing requirements will be imposed to ensure that the entrant does not reduce his investment commitment while he is permitted to stay in Hong Kong under the Scheme. For investment on financial assets, the entrant is required to transact only in the permissible investments listed in paragraph (II) on page "Permissible Investment Asset Classes" in the designated account opened with a single financial intermediary note. Details of the requirements are set out in the Rules for the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme (the Scheme Rules) [ID(E)968 (English version) or ID(C)968 (Chinese version)]. An entrant is required to undertake in the application form to the effect that he agrees to abide by the Scheme Rules whilst remaining in Hong Kong as an entrant under the Scheme (the Undertaking).
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Note
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The financial intermediary must be an authorized institution as defined in the Banking Ordinance or a licensed corporation licensed to perform Type 1, 4 or 9 regulated activities under the Securities and Futures Ordinance.
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Change in Value of Investment
The entrant is not required to top up the value of his investment in either asset class should the value of his total investment under the Scheme fall below the requisite minimum level of HK$6.5 million. He is also not allowed to withdraw any capital gain from his investment if its market value rises above the requisite level. Rental income from the qualifying property and cash dividend income and interest income derived from permissible financial assets can be retained by the entrant and need not be ring-fenced under the Scheme. The entrant is free to switch his investments from one permissible asset class to another (e.g. from real estate to financial assets or vice versa) provided that the entire proceeds from the sale of the initial assets are reinvested. He should keep a record of every change to his investment portfolio for the purpose of applying for extension of stay in Hong Kong.
Application Procedures
Application Form - The entrant should complete the application form [ID(E)967 (English version) or ID(C)967 (Chinese version)] which can be obtained from the following offices:
- Immigration Department Headquarters;
- Immigration Branch Offices;
- Chinese Diplomatic and Consular Missions; and
- Immigration Section of the Office of the Government of the HKSAR in Beijing.
Entry of Dependants
Entrants may be allowed to bring in their dependants (i.e. spouse and unmarried dependent children under 18 years of age) provided that the entrant is capable of supporting and accommodating his dependants on his own without relying on any return on the permissible investment assets, employment or public assistance in Hong Kong. The entry of dependants will however be subject to any other policy applicable to such entry at the time of application. Application from dependants should be made on ID 997 , which can also be downloaded from the website.
Entry Arrangements
A successful entrant, and his dependant(s) if any, will be issued with a visa / entry permit to be collected from the Immigration Department by himself or through his local reference in Hong Kong for onward transmission to him. The visa label should be affixed onto a blank visa page of the entrant's travel document for presentation to the immigration officer upon arrival in Hong Kong. If the entrant has no proper travel document acceptable for traveling to Hong Kong, an entry permit will be issued instead. The same entry arrangements will apply to the entrant's dependants.
Condition of Stay
When approval in principle is given to an entrant, he will be initially allowed to enter Hong Kong on visitor status for three months. If evidence of active progress in investment can be shown, his visitor status can be extended for another three months. When the entrant has furnished proof that the requisite level of investment has been made, permission to stay for two years (formal approval) will be granted. Further extensions for two years will be granted if the entrant can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Immigration Department that he continues to meet the eligibility criteria and portfolio maintenance requirements as mentioned in the corresponding web pages. Further extensions for 2 years will be granted on the same basis. Upon completion of not less than seven years of continuous ordinary residence in Hong Kong, the entrant and his dependants may apply for the right of abode in Hong Kong in accordance with the law.
Entrants admitted under the Scheme are subject to a special condition of stay. If an entrant breaches any part of his Undertaking to the Immigration Department, he, together with his dependants, if any, would only be allowed to stay in Hong Kong for the remainder of his limit of stay or two months after the Director of Immigration has determined that he has breached the Undertaking, whichever is earlier
Fees
Warning
Any person who knowingly and willfully makes a statement or gives information which he knows to be false or does not believe to be true shall be guilty of an offence under the laws of Hong Kong and any visa / entry permit / extension of stay so issued to him and his dependants shall have no effect.
Important Notice
The Director of Immigration has absolute discretion to approve or disapprove an application for residence made under the Scheme. Any investment in the HKSAR is and remains the sole decision and responsibility of the entrant. The Director of Immigration and the HKSAR Government shall not be liable to the entrant for any loss on any investment pursuant to the Scheme howsoever arising
Contact Us
If you have further enquire, please do not hesitate to contact Tannet at anytime, anywhere by simply visiting Tannet’s website www.tannet.net.cn, or calling Hong Kong hotline at 852-27826888 or China hotline at 86-755-82143181. or emailing to mailtannet@21cn.com. You are also welcome to talk with Overseas SME Service Department online by simply joining our MSN: service@tannet.net
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