Types of Hong Kong visa and How to Apply

There are various types of visas in Hong Kong, including student visas, travel pass / tourist visa for travel purposes, training visa for business purpose, work visa and investment visa.

If you are travelling to Hong Kong, you do not need to apply for visa if your visit is within 90 days (visit visa will be issued automatically). However, visa will be required regardless of travel and business purpose, if you are staying for a longer period.

For visas that are of business purpose, training visa is used for training purposes solely and the staying duration is limited to a maximum of one year.

For investment visa, you are required to work as a shareholder of one Hong Kong corporation in order to get one. It is necessary to have a Working Visa (Employment Visa) if you are working in Hong Kong as a full time staff.
Although the duration of Working Visas is set as one year, it is possible to extend the period if you apply, unlike the Training Visas. In addition to Working Visas, if you are going with your family, a Dependant Visa is also required.

Conditions for obtaining work visas

One point to note when acquiring a work visa is that certain conditions given by the Hong Kong Immigration Department must be satisfied.
There are some requirements for you to get your applicant’s visa approved. First, the applicant can contribute to Hong Kong’s economic development with the position; Second, the job duties and the position itself are difficult to find locals in Hong Kong to carry out. In particular, in order to raise the global status as an international financial city, Hong Kong has established policies to attract talented experts with extraordinary professional talent and technological excellence.

The threshold for getting a work visa is high. Keep in mind that if you fail to acquire once, it will turn even more difficult when applying for the second time. If the application documents are counterfeit because the applicants simply want to satisfy the visa application conditions to get the application approved, there is a possibility of developing into a more severe problem than not getting a visa: fine or even imprisonment. Let’s prepare thoroughly in order to get your visa done in a more successful manner.

How to obtain a work visa

In order to obtain a work visa, first you will need to prepare necessary documents and send it to the local corporation.
The required documents are 4 copies of passport copy (your passport should be due after 6 months or more), 2 color photographs (5.0 x 4.0 cm), 2 visa application documents and a diploma proof of your English qualifications.
In addition to these, there are documents that the company side (Japan) has to prepare, namely “Personal History” and “Certificate of Employment”. They are necessary for the application.

Prepare the required documents and send them to Hong Kong’s overseas affiliates and ask them to help apply for the work visa for you. However, conditions for the visa issuance are difficult to satisfy. There are also cases in which it is crucial to acquire the visa successfully for the first time. Sometimes, you can entrust an agency that has abundant knowledge and experience rather than doing it in-house, to increase the success rate. After submitting the application for 4-6 weeks, a notification will be issued to the local corporation. Then, a visa label will be issued and the corporation will send it to Japan. Once you receive it, just paste the visa label on your passport, then you are ready for your flight.

How do I emigrate with my family?

In that case, a dependent visa is needed. Dependent visas are visas that the working / investment visa holder’s spouse, children or parents can obtain after s/he holds a sponsor. When should you apply for the dependent visa for your family? Unlike a working visa, you can apply after entering the country.
There are some necessary documents for you to apply for the dependent visa, including a copy of the family member’s passport (the passport should also be due after 6 months or more) and 2 color 5.0 x 4.0 cm photographs, a copy of the home address registration proof and the proof of employment in Hong Kong.
For the spouse, it is needed to prove the marriage / family relationship, child and parents will need to prove their family relationship. If there is one copy of family registration, it can be covered for everyone. Based on the family registration, within 3 months, the Japanese consulate will issue a family certificate as proof. Also, please be reminded that you are required to pay HKD 3,000 as handling fee when you obtain the dependent visa.

Summary

Since the visa takes time to be issued after submitting the application, you should apply for it as soon as possible.

Although it is possible to travel directly without having a visa and apply directly at the site. You will need to stick the visa label issued after the application to the passport and enter into another country (other than Japan), and then enter Hong Kong again. Therefore, it takes time and effort for you to do and it might be quite risky as well. It’d be great if you can apply for a visa on behalf of a Hong Kong local corporation before your first day of work, and have your visa label issued.
Simply get a visa and move in! You may also check the living cost in Hong Kong before you set off to the airport.

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