User:Karie Chan/sandbox

 Tips to getting a work visa in Hong Kong  All employers are required to confirm that their expatriate employees are legally capable to work in Hong Kong for foreigners. Obtaining a work visa in Hong Kong is required to for expatriates living in Hong Kong or doing business in HK. To apply for a Hong Kong Visa, one has to fulfill a few criteria before submission. There are two main routes through sponsorship to applying a working visa in Hong Kong;
 * Employment Visa
 * Investment Based Work Visa

Hong Kong Employment visa - Hong Kong Work Visa Application
For foreign professional workers and specialists, finding a Hong Kong company to sponsor your work visa is the most common way in Hong Kong. The applicants required to hold at least a bachelor’s degree or equivalent working experience in that field In order to qualify for the sponsorship, which can prove eligibility to work in Hong Kong. Showing the legal employment status and relative documentations is one of the requirements by Hong Kong Immigration.

Generally, in order to successfully apply for a work visa in Hong Kong, there are several criteria Hong Kong Immigration Department will be focused on :

1. An individual should have secured an employment/job offer before the Hong Kong visa application is submitted;

2. An individual should possess unique qualifications and relevant working experience that are not readily available in Hong Kong.

3. An individual should be placed in a management level job position and the salary offered should be met with market rate.

4. The sponsoring company should be financial stable and healthy.

5. The sponsoring company should have local staffs and office premise has already been set up

5. The sponsoring company should have local staffs and office premise has already been set up

Investment Based Work visa - Applying for a work visa in Hong Kong
An investment visa is a subcategory of a Hong Kong work visa, designed for those business owners who intend to stay in Hong Kong to actively participate in daily business operations. The applicant should be appointed as the majority of shareholders of the company.

In order to obtain an investment visa in Hong Kong, an individual should prove the followings :

•	He/she is a sole or majority shareholder of the Hong Kong Company. To distinguish an investment visa from a work visa, one should be a majority shareholder of the company and should contribute significantly in a business sense. Otherwise a work visa would be more appropriate. •	His/her business in Hong Kong will enhance the Hong Kong economy.

Hong Kong Immigration Visa will focus on the following criteria: 1. Local hiring; 2. Having an office premise; 3. Having actual or/and potential business transactions in the Hong Kong company; 4. Having sufficient fund.

There is no minimum capital injection required by Immigration Department for an individual to invest in a business in order to obtain an investment visa. However, applicants should show that they have sufficient funds to support themselves and the business in Hong Kong. Thus, sound financial statements are one of the supporting criteria required by Hong Kong Immigration Department.