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WaldoPepper
29th Apr 2006, 08:45
Good news,
Strongly rumoured over the past few weeks and then an article was in "The Standard" as follows:

All clear for the trailing spouse
Less than three years after enforcing a ban on holders of dependant visas taking up jobs in Hong Kong, the government has announced a change of heart.
Leslie Kwoh
Monday, April 17, 2006
Less than three years after enforcing a ban on holders of dependant visas taking up jobs in Hong Kong, the government has announced a change of heart.
"As Hong Kong's economic and employment conditions continue to improve, we've decided to remove this restriction to enhance our edge in attracting professionals," an Immigration Department spokesman said.
The announcement was made discreetly at a Security Bureau press briefing on the new Quality Migrant Scheme - the latest in a string of efforts to open Hong Kong's doors, albeit cautiously, to "top-notch" foreign professionals.
Though the exact date of the lifting has yet to be announced, officials said the new policy will also apply retroactively to all dependants of persons admitted for employment or capital investment who have entered the territory since July 2003. But they declined to reveal whether the change will apply to dependants under the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals, also launched in 2003.
According to Paul Yip, senior lecturer with the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science at Hong Kong University, the move is a telling sign that "things did not work out as the government had hoped."
In 2003, then-chief executive Tung Chee-hwa insisted the ban was a "timely and necessary move to underscore serious concerns attached by the government to tackle unemployment." But Yip said he believes the ban backfired and the government now realized Hong Kong was losing its "competitive edge."
He said: "That restriction was not conducive to welcoming people to come and work in Hong Kong.
"Combined with an aging population and the northward flow of talents to China, the number and quality of people coming in was probably lower than anticipated.
"We're coming to terms with the fact that the more restrictions you put on, the less people will come. Removing barriers is a first step."
Dependants of working expatriates are often labeled "trailing spouses," but often they are actually highly- skilled professionals who gave up their jobs to come to Hong Kong, he said.
Since the restriction was introduced, however, only 769 dependants have applied for and received special permission to work, according to the Immigration Department - a scanty number, considering almost 30,000 dependant visas were issued in 2004-05.
That means potentially thousands of new job seekers are just waiting to flood the local market - which begs the question: are there enough jobs in Hong Kong to go around?
"We haven't seen the job market this active since we've been here, and we've been here for 10 years," said Dan Chavasse, managing director of executive recruitment agency Michael Page International. "2005 was a big year, and we had a tremendous start to this year."
Chavasse said he believed many of the dependants who have entered the territory since 2003 have been "put off" from applying for special permission to work because of the anticipated "hassle."
He said: "Our clients will be delighted to hear about this change. There're so many jobs that would suit the `trailing spouse' - it could be a marketing event, professional support lawyer, or a nine- to 12-month assistant program."
But before locals despair about the inevitable consequence of a sudden influx - stiffened competition in the job market - Yip said he expected the new policy would increase Hong Kong's overall "competitive edge" and eventually create even more industries and jobs.
"Yes, it'll produce some competition, but at the same time it'll also compensate for the holes in Hong Kong's manpower. We should appreciate talent from overseas, because they'll eventually make our economy more active," he said.
WP

Thetan
3rd May 2006, 09:34
W.P.

That is good news indeed!

But does this apply to girlfriends as well or does one have to be married? I would definitely like to bring my girlfriend to HK, but would she be able to get a job and life in Hongkong?:ok:


Thanx,
Th.

WaldoPepper
3rd May 2006, 09:44
I believe you have to be married.

HK will only issue your spouse with a HK ID card once you are married. And you can't get a working visa until you hold a HK ID card. Until then, your girlfriend must exit and re-enter HK every few months. The time she can stay for depends on your nationality. I only know that for Aussies it's 90 days, but some nationalities are as low as 30 days.

You can go to Macau and back in a day (by ferry), but the authorities are on to that and are giving people a hard time about it at the border. You can still do it though.

Also you can go to Shenzhen (by train), they don't seem to worry up there too much.

All that aside, she can obtain a working visa on her own merits by getting an "Investment Visa" which allows her to work and start her own business. The paperwork is hard, confusing, and you seem to never have the correct forms when you go to turn them in. You need to have quite a good business plan and if you don't meet your own business plan objectives (hiring locals etc) they will take it off you.

If your spouse just wants casual work and not get involved in her own full-time business, then this change in law will make things much easier.

WP

Thetan
3rd May 2006, 12:46
Well looks like I have to get married if I make it through the gouge!!:oh:

Thank you for the info!:)

Tony Le Mesmer
3rd May 2006, 14:24
Hi guys. Just a quick question. Am an S/O with Dragonair employed under local terms therefore am a permanent ID card holder. My girlfriend or known in the UK as common law wife will be joining me soon from Scotland (barbaric country and people I know) but does anybody know what rights she will be entitled to when she arrives considering my own residency conditions.

Thanks,
Tony Le Mesmer


PS Would rather not get married......well not yet

WaldoPepper
3rd May 2006, 14:40
Really not sure Tony, Being a "Permanent" ID card holder is quite different to the one I hold.

And not sure if the "Common Law" wife would stand up here. You should really get in touch with the immigration department to be sure.

WP

christep
3rd May 2006, 15:04
Just a quick question. Am an S/O with Dragonair employed under local terms therefore am a permanent ID card holder.Not sure I follow the logic there - to get a permanent ID you either need to be a HK Citizen or be resident for 7 years; being employed on local terms has nothing to do with it.

If you ID card says "Holder has the right of abode in HK" on the back (i.e. you are a Permanent Resident) then your wife (and it does have to be a legal marriage - common law isn't accepted by Immigration) would get a Dependent Visa with which she could take any kind of employment without any further paperwork.

If your ID card is not so endorsed then your wife (same caveat) would get a Dependent Visa which would give her the right to reside in HK, but not the right to work. However, the government has announced , as mentioned above, that this will change so that Dependents on non-Permanent residents will once again (as was before July 2003) have the right to work. No effective date has yet been announced.

Tony Le Mesmer
3rd May 2006, 15:23
Perfectly answered Chirstep. Am a HK citizen and was just wondering what entitlements she would get ! Had a guess that they would not accept the term "common law wife"

Thanks guys:cool:

PS Can I also add that you can not be employed on local terms at CX or KA unless you are a permanent ID card holder :)

Ace Man
15th May 2006, 02:28
Spousal Visa Rule Scrapped (SCMP 13/05/2006)

It's official, if you are in this situation your wives cans go to immigration and have the 'employment not permitted' chop on their current Visa removed. Enquiries to the immigration 28246111

Ibanez
13th Aug 2006, 08:59
Can somebody please confirm the following quote from the HK immigration website:
Dependants of persons who have been admitted to take up employment (as professionals, investors or for training) or as capital investment entrants may apply to the Immigration Department for cancellation of the condition of stay that employment is not permitted if such condition has been imposed on them.
So this means that, after being accepted by Cathay as an SO, your spouse has the right to be employed in HK? Just want to get my facts straighten out. THANK YOU!

WaldoPepper
13th Aug 2006, 09:02
Yes, correct.

My wife plus many others I know of have gone into the immigration department and had the restriction lifted from their VISA. It is very easy and costs nothing.

WP

Ibanez
13th Aug 2006, 09:16
CHEERS!:ok: Thanks for that. Now I need to go and buy a ring.