The Quality Migrant Admission Scheme (QMAS) seeks to attract highly skilled or talented persons to settle in Hong Kong in order to enhance Hong Kong's economic competitiveness. Applicants are not required to have secured an offer of local employment before applying for entry or being admitted to Hong Kong for settlement under the Scheme.
Selection mechanism
Stage 1: prerequisites
Applicants must meet all of the following prerequisites: be aged 18 or above when submitting an application; be able to demonstrate that they can support and accommodate themselves and their dependants (if any) on their own financial resources, without relying on public assistance, during their stay in Hong Kong; have no criminal record or adverse immigration record in Hong Kong or elsewhere; and have a good educational background, normally a first degree from a recognised university or tertiary educational institution (under special circumstances, good technical qualifications, proven professional abilities and/or experience and achievements supported by documentary evidence may also be considered).
Stage 2: assessment routes
Applicants who have met all the prerequisites may choose to be assessed either under the General Points Test or the Achievement-based Points Test. There are 12 assessment criteria under the General Points Test, and a passing threshold applies. The Immigration Department's prevailing passing threshold is 6 out of the 12 criteria, and it is subject to change from time to time without prior notice. You can use this site's QMAS assessment criteria self-check to go through the criteria one by one.
The Achievement-based Points Test has two assessment criteria: the applicant has received an award of exceptional achievement (e.g. Olympic medal, Nobel prize, national/international award); and the applicant can show that his/her work has been acknowledged by his/her peers or has contributed significantly to the development of his/her field (e.g. lifetime achievement award from industry).
Stage 3: selection exercise
Selection exercises are conducted on a regular basis. Applicants who meet the prerequisites and the passing threshold (General Points Test) or one of the assessment criteria (Achievement-based Points Test) will be considered. In general, not all applications meeting both the prerequisites and the passing threshold will necessarily be approved, and applications meeting more assessment criteria will be considered more favourably.
Length of stay and right of abode
Persons admitted through the General Points Test will normally be granted an initial stay of 36 months. To obtain an extension, applicants must provide proof that they have taken steps to settle in Hong Kong by taking up residence here, for example by securing gainful employment or establishing a business. If an extension is approved, applicants are normally granted a stay in a "3 + 2" pattern. A person who has been permitted to remain in Hong Kong for not less than two years and who had an assessable income for salaries tax of HK$2 million or more in the previous year of assessment will normally be granted an extension of five years. Persons admitted through the Achievement-based Points Test will normally be granted an initial stay of eight years. After seven years of continuous ordinary residence in Hong Kong, you may apply for the right of abode in accordance with the law.
The Immigration Department's published rules prevail.