Top Talent Pass Scheme — Hong Kong's Points-Free Global Talent Visa

Launched in December 2022 amid an emigration wave and post-pandemic talent shortage, the Top Talent Pass Scheme (TTPS) lets high earners (annual income of HK$2.5 million or more) and graduates of the world's top universities apply for a Hong Kong work visa without a job offer or quota, renewable if they can show local employment or entrepreneurial activity.

By the end of December 2024 the scheme had received more than 116,000 applications, approved nearly 92,000, and seen over 75,000 approved talents actually arrive in Hong Kong with their families. Government follow-up surveys found more than half of arrivals were under 40, most took managerial or professional roles with a median monthly salary of about HK$50,000 (around a quarter earning HK$100,000 or more), and nearly 20% of accompanying spouses also found local employment.

The scheme's central open question is retention rather than attraction: of the first cohort of visas that came up for renewal, only about 54% of holders applied to extend by July 2025 (7,394 of 13,678 expiring visas), with renewal rates split sharply by category — 77% among the highest earners (Category A) versus 50% among graduate entrants (Category B). The government has responded by extending the renewal window and committing to process at least 50,000 extension applications a year through 2027, but has not yet published data on how many non-renewers left Hong Kong versus shifted to another visa route.

Read the full analysis: https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202501/22/P2025012200218.htm