GEP and the Mainland talents scheme

There are 2 employment routes that start with a job offer. You secure the post, then you apply for the visa: the General Employment Policy (GEP), and the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals (ASMTP). The conditions of stay differ from the Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates (IANG) and the Top Talent Pass Scheme. The points below follow the Immigration Department pages for GEP and ASMTP, and Guide ID(E)991, checked 18 October 2026.

Choose the route by nationality and status

1. If you are a Mainland Chinese resident, use ASMTP. GEP does not apply.
2. If you are not a Mainland resident (foreign nationality, Taiwan, Macao, and similar), use GEP. GEP does not apply to nationals of Afghanistan, Cuba, or North Korea.
3. If you are a Chinese citizen living overseas and you hold a Chinese passport, you may apply under GEP in either of these cases. You already hold permanent resident status overseas. Or you have lived overseas for not less than 1 year immediately before the application, and you submit the application from overseas.
4. If you are a non-local graduate of a full-time locally accredited degree programme studied in Hong Kong, or a Greater Bay Area campus graduate, you may apply under IANG. The Immigration Department states this on both the GEP page and the ASMTP page.

Neither route has a quota. Neither is limited by industry. There is also a technical professionals category, for non-degree specialists aged 18 to 40. That category has a quota, and it is limited to technical trades in designated industries. It is not set out here.

Approval conditions for the two routes (set out from the official wording; the same for both)

1. There is no security reason to refuse the application, and you have no known serious criminal record.
2. You have a good educational background. That normally means a bachelor's degree in the relevant field. In special circumstances, good technical qualifications, proven professional abilities, and/or documented experience and achievements may also be accepted.
3. There is a genuine vacancy.
4. You have genuinely secured the employment. The work must relate to your academic qualifications or your work experience, and a local person cannot readily be found to do it.
5. The pay and benefits (including income, housing, medical care, and other fringe benefits) must be broadly the same as the market pay and benefits for local professionals in Hong Kong at the time.

The largest difference from IANG is item 4. GEP and ASMTP require proof that a local person cannot readily take up the post. IANG does not.

What the employer must prepare

The employing company must complete ID 990B, or the online form that corresponds to it, and upload the documents in Part VII(B) of the guide:

1. An employment contract or a letter of appointment, stating the post, salary, benefits, and period of employment.
2. The business registration certificate.
3. Proof of financial standing.
4. Company background, such as business activities, mode of operation, products, markets, and similar.
5. A company established for less than 12 months must submit a detailed business plan.

On ID 990B, the field for the reasons for employing the applicant to work in Hong Kong, and for why the post cannot be filled by a local employee, is marked on the form as applying only to GEP and ASMTP.

Facilitation measures (Part VIII of the guide):

1. The company may omit the business registration certificate, the financial proof, the company background, the business plan, and the staff list in either of these cases. Within the 24 months before submission, it has successfully obtained an employment or training visa for a non-local employee. Or it is listed on the Main Board or GEM of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong.
2. Proof that local recruitment is difficult is not required if the post is a profession on the Talent List for which there is a local shortage, or if the annual pay (total remuneration, including housing allowance and other fringe benefits) reaches HK$2 million or above.
3. Proof of local recruitment is not required for a qualifying intra-company transfer. The post is managerial or professional, you have served the company for not less than 1 year, the pay is at market level, and the number of people transferred is reasonable for the size of the company.

Processing time and fees

1. Once the documents and the application fee have all been received, processing generally takes 4 weeks.
2. Both routes are specified schemes. The application fee is HK$600, and it is not refunded whatever the result. After approval, you pay a visa issuance fee. For a fixed limit of stay of 6 months or more, that fee is HK$1,300.

Limit of stay and extension

1. On first entry you are generally permitted to stay for 36 months, with an employment condition, or for the period of the employment contract, whichever is shorter.
2. Apply for an extension within the 3 months before the limit expires, and submit it at the latest 6 weeks before expiry. Processing generally takes 2 to 3 weeks. If approved, the extension is generally on a "3-2" year pattern, still with an employment condition, or for the contract period, whichever is shorter.
3. If you have not changed jobs, the extension needs only a letter from the current employer. The letter must state the post, the total monthly remuneration, and the period of employment.
4. Top talent category. If you have worked in Hong Kong under GEP or ASMTP for not less than 2 years, and your assessable income for salaries tax in the previous year of assessment is not less than HK$2 million, you may apply for a 5-year extension. After approval you are subject only to the limit of stay. The employment condition no longer applies.

The decisive difference: the employment condition

1. A GEP or ASMTP holder may do only the work the Director of Immigration has approved. A change of job requires an application to the Immigration Department for approval beforehand. An application that meets the requirements is generally considered.
2. Changing jobs, or taking part-time work, without approval is a breach of the conditions of stay.
3. If you are approved in the top talent category and are subject only to a limit of stay, a change of job needs only a notice through the Immigration Department online service, given within the permitted stay.
4. By comparison, an IANG holder or a Top Talent Pass Scheme holder is subject only to a limit of stay. You may take up work and change jobs freely, without prior approval.

If a Hong Kong graduate is already working under GEP or ASMTP

Question 19 of the IANG frequently asked questions: a non-local graduate of a Hong Kong institution who is already working under GEP or ASMTP may apply to switch to IANG at any time. If you do not switch, you cannot change jobs or take part-time work without prior approval.

For people in this position, the gain in switching to IANG is a freer change of job. What you weigh against that is the IANG rule on how long a stay is granted, generally not more than 3 years, or until the contract ends.

Common sticking points

1. Do not carry IANG conditions across to GEP or ASMTP. Those two routes require that a local person cannot readily take up the post. The employer must state the reasons on ID 990B, unless a facilitation measure applies, such as a Talent List post, annual pay of HK$2 million or above, or a qualifying intra-company transfer.
2. Do not start the job before it is approved. GEP and ASMTP carry an employment condition. Starting work for that employer before approval, and before you hold the e-Visa, is conduct that risks a breach of the conditions of stay.
3. Do not handle a change of employer as you would under IANG. A GEP or ASMTP holder must apply for approval before changing employer. It is not a notice after the event.
4. A short contract period limits the stay. Both the first limit of stay and the extension are capped by the contract period, whichever is shorter.
5. A Mainland resident should not use GEP. The GEP page states that it does not apply to Mainland Chinese residents. A Mainland resident uses ASMTP. A Chinese citizen who holds a Chinese passport and lives overseas may use GEP only by meeting the overseas permanent-resident condition, or by having lived overseas for 1 full year and submitting the application from overseas.
6. While an extension is waiting on a result, you must still leave Hong Kong before the limit of stay expires, unless the Director gives special approval.

The order of checks when you choose a route

1. Did you graduate from a full-time locally accredited degree that you studied in Hong Kong? If yes, look at IANG first.
2. If no, are you a Mainland resident? If yes, look at ASMTP. If no, look at GEP.
3. If your bachelor's degree is from an eligible university and you have more than 3 years of work experience, you can also compare Category B of the Top Talent Pass Scheme.
4. If you meet 6 or more items on the General Points Test under the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme (QMAS), you can compare QMAS.
5. Will the employer submit the company documents and explain the local recruitment situation? GEP and ASMTP depend heavily on the employer doing so.

Sources

• Immigration Department, General Employment Policy webpage (checked 18 October 2026)
• Immigration Department, Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals webpage (checked 18 October 2026)
• Immigration Department, Guidebook for Entry for Employment as Professionals in Hong Kong, ID(E)991 (04/2026 edition), Parts II, III, VII and VIII
• Immigration Department, application form ID 990B (01/2025 edition)
• Immigration Department, Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates, frequently asked questions
• Immigration Department, New fee structure for visa applications under specified schemes