Over 40,000 overseas talents enter Hong Kong job market since 2020: official

(ECNS) -- A total of 30,946 overseas talents (excluding the Chinese mainland) have been admitted to Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for employment through the five talent admission schemes from 2020 to 2021, a local official said on Wednesday.

The data reached 10,730 in the first nine months of this year, said Chris Sun, secretary for Labor and Welfare in the HKSAR. 

At present, overseas talents employed in Hong Kong are mainly admitted via five schemes, namely, General Employment Policy, Quality Migrant Admission Scheme, Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates, Admission Scheme for the Second Generation of Chinese Hong Kong Permanent Residents, Technology Talent Admission Scheme.

Sun said the city gives priority to cultivating local talents, and overseas talents are complementary. Hong Kong endeavors to enrich its local talent pool to meet the needs of socio-economic development.

In the past three years, affected by the global pandemic, approval figures for the talent admission schemes have decreased significantly, which failed to reflect the true results of each, he said.

He pointed out that relevant departments are adopting various methods and channels to promote the schemes and attract talents from all walks of life.