Steady progress: The Advisory Committee on Admission of Quality Migrants & Professionals Chairman Henry Fan and Assistant Director of Immigration Helen Chan update the media on the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme.

So far, 83 talented people have been selected to settle in Hong Kong under the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme, the Immigration Department says. The scheme will be reviewed after a year's operation.

Assistant Director of Immigration Helen Chan today told reporters 479 applications had been received since the scheme's launch on June 28. Of the 186 applications processed, 122 were short-listed for assessment by the Advisory Committee on Admission of Quality Migrants & Professionals.

Advisory Committee Chairman Henry Fan said 83 of the 122 short-listed applications have been approved, with 10 under the Achievement-based Points Test and 73 under the General Points Test.

For the 10 successful applicants under the Achievement-based Points Test, six are involved in sports, two in broadcasting and entertainment and two in arts and culture. The six men and four women are all from the Mainland.

Mainly Mainlanders

For the 73 successful applicants under the General Points Test, 20 are involved in finance and accounting services, 11 in commerce and trade, and 11 in information technology and telecommunications. Among the 51 men and 22 women, 76% are from the Mainland and 12% from Australia and New Zealand. One applicant has three children, five have two each and 21 have one each.

Of the 73 people selected, 16% hold doctoral degrees and 42% master degrees, and 38% have at least 10 years' work experience.

Mr Fan stressed advisory committee members handle applications with fairness and objectivity, adding they were not informed of the applicants' identities when assessing their applications. To verify applicants' achievements, the committee will seek advice from relevant local and international organisations.

Sports, music talent shines

He reiterated the scheme aims to seek highly skilled and talented people that Hong Kong needs. Among the 10 successful applicants under the Achievement-based Points Test, some are Olympic medallists and some have outstanding achievement in music.

When asked why 28% of the 73 successful applicants under the General Points Test are from the finance and accounting sector, Mr Fan pointed out the number of applicants from this field is comparatively higher than other sectors. Among the 479 applications received, 87 came from the finance and accounting sector. This was followed by the academic research and education sector, accounting for 71 applications.

Ms Chan said successful applicants will be notified of the assessment result. They must come to Hong Kong in three months to attend an interview and present originals of all documents submitted during the application for verification before getting the entry visa or permit under the scheme to stay in the city. She expected the first batch of successful applicants will settle in Hong Kong at the end of this year.