The number of people from Hong Kong applying for residency in Taiwan last year rose 41 percent from a year earlier to 5,858, National Immigration Agency statistics showed.
The statistics also showed that 600 applications were filed by Hong Kong residents in the first quarter of this year — three times the number filed in the same period last year — with applicants apparently not deterred by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Just one day after it was reported that the Chinese government plans to enact new national security laws in Hong Kong, inquiries regarding immigration to Taiwan grew 10-fold, a Hong Kong-based immigration consultant was quoted as saying in a Hong Kong media report on Saturday.
Photo: AFP
Separately, a Taiwan-based immigration consultant, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that a series of information sessions they held in Hong Kong in June last year were all filled to capacity.
There was a wave of immigration to Taiwan in 1997 when Hong Kong was handed over to China, followed by a second wave during the 2014 “Umbrella movement,” the Taiwanese consultant said, adding that a third wave occurred last year, around the time of the protests against a proposed extradition bill.
In 2018, there were 4,148 residency applicants and 1,090 permanent residency applicants, agency statistics showed.
Last year, the figures rose to 5,858 and 1,474, respectively.
Of those applying for residency last year, 1,243 people applied in October alone.
Of the reasons given in the residency applications, the top three were “study,” “marriage” and “investment,” in that order.
Sixteen possible ways of applying for residency are stipulated in the Regulations Governing Residency or Permanent Residency for People of the Hong Kong Area and the Macau Area (香港澳門居民進入臺灣地區及居留定居許可辦法). These include applying as a blood relative or spouse of a Taiwanese, as a skilled person holding a Hong Kong Government-issued certificate in a specialized field, as a person of extraordinary accomplishment in a specific field, or as a businessperson investing NT$6 million (US$199,940) or more in Taiwan.
People from other countries immigrating to Taiwan through investment must invest a minimum of NT$30 million, but those from Hong Kong can immigrate with a significantly lower investment, making Taiwan an appealing option, the Taiwanese consultant said.
Those applying as entrepreneurs can come on an even lower investment of only NT$2 million, but they must reside in Taiwan for at least 183 days per year for five years in a row before they are eligible for citizenship, the consultant said.
EUROPEAN TARGETS: The planned Munich center would support TSMC’s European customers to design high-performance, energy-efficient chips, an executive said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said that it plans to launch a new research-and-development (R&D) center in Munich, Germany, next quarter to assist customers with chip design. TSMC Europe president Paul de Bot made the announcement during a technology symposium in Amsterdam on Tuesday, the chipmaker said. The new Munich center would be the firm’s first chip designing center in Europe, it said. The chipmaker has set up a major R&D center at its base of operations in Hsinchu and plans to create a new one in the US to provide services for major US customers,
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday said that it would redesign the written portion of the driver’s license exam to make it more rigorous. “We hope that the exam can assess drivers’ understanding of traffic rules, particularly those who take the driver’s license test for the first time. In the past, drivers only needed to cram a book of test questions to pass the written exam,” Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told a news conference at the Taoyuan Motor Vehicle Office. “In the future, they would not be able to pass the test unless they study traffic regulations
‘A SURVIVAL QUESTION’: US officials have been urging the opposition KMT and TPP not to block defense spending, especially the special defense budget, an official said The US plans to ramp up weapons sales to Taiwan to a level exceeding US President Donald Trump’s first term as part of an effort to deter China as it intensifies military pressure on the nation, two US officials said on condition of anonymity. If US arms sales do accelerate, it could ease worries about the extent of Trump’s commitment to Taiwan. It would also add new friction to the tense US-China relationship. The officials said they expect US approvals for weapons sales to Taiwan over the next four years to surpass those in Trump’s first term, with one of them saying
‘COMING MENACINGLY’: The CDC advised wearing a mask when visiting hospitals or long-term care centers, on public transportation and in crowded indoor venues Hospital visits for COVID-19 last week increased by 113 percent to 41,402, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday, as it encouraged people to wear a mask in three public settings to prevent infection. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Deputy Director Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳) said weekly hospital visits for COVID-19 have been increasing for seven consecutive weeks, and 102 severe COVID-19 cases and 19 deaths were confirmed last week, both the highest weekly numbers this year. CDC physician Lee Tsung-han (李宗翰) said the youngest person hospitalized due to the disease this year was reported last week, a one-month-old baby, who does not