Hong Kong is doubling down on its courtship of overseas talent and investment. On 24 September 2026 the Immigration Department announced that, from 1 October, it will extend the Immigration Facilitation Scheme for Invited Persons (IF Scheme) beyond ASEAN to 11 new jurisdictions across Central Asia and the Middle East. Nationals from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will now be able to enter Hong Kong visa-free for up to 14 days when formally invited by a Hong Kong bureau or department. At the same time, the popular Immigration Facilitation Scheme for Visitors Participating in Short-term Activities in Designated Sectors (STV Scheme) is being upgraded. A new social-welfare category joins the existing 17 designated sectors, and the list of authorised host organisations has risen to almost 500 across finance, higher-education and mega-events. Participants may undertake pre-approved paid activities for two weeks per trip, giving corporations a fast channel to fly in researchers, speakers, performers and athletes without the administrative burden of a work visa. Officials say the twin moves respond to “strong market demand” since the schemes’ pilot launch in 2022, which has already enabled more than 56 000 visits for short-term work. They also dovetail with Chief Executive John Lee’s strategy to position Hong Kong as a super-connector between China and emerging markets covered by the Belt and Road Initiative. By tapping fast-growing economies in Central Asia and the Gulf, Hong Kong is widening its business funnel just as many companies diversify supply chains and capital flows away from traditional Western hubs. For multinationals with regional headquarters in the city, the expansion offers practical benefits. A Gulf food-tech start-up can now send engineers to set up demonstration kitchens during trade fairs; a Kazakh fintech could place executives in Hong Kong for investor roadshows; and local universities may bring in social-work scholars to co-teach intensive courses. HR teams should update travel-policy matrices and liaise with event organisers to ensure invitation letters contain the precise wording required by the Immigration Department. Crucially, the authorities stress that the new arrangements should not displace local labour. Internal checks remain in place, including a one-stop electronic platform that records every invitation, and travellers using the schemes must still satisfy standard admissibility and health-declaration requirements on arrival. Even so, the broader reach and digital processing promise to make Hong Kong a nimbler gateway for deal-making and knowledge exchange in 2027 and beyond.
Source: news.gov.hk
