Hong Kong offers new visa to woo talent amid brain drain

By KANIS LEUNG and ZEN SOO
Associated Press

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s leader has unveiled a new visa scheme to woo global talent, as the city seeks to stem a brain drain that has risked its status as an international financial center. Chief Executive John Lee said Wednesday the new Top Talent Pass Scheme will allow those earning an annual salary of 2.5 million Hong Kong dollars ($318,472) or above and graduates from the world’s top universities to work or pursue opportunities in the city for two years. The bid to attract talent to Hong Kong comes as hundreds of thousands of residents have left the city in recent years, driven by a deteriorating political climate and strict COVID-19 entry restrictions that were in place for much of the pandemic.