HONG KONG · Policy & practice
Hong Kong New CIES: which dependants can join, work and study?
New CIES allows qualifying spouses or partners and unmarried dependent children under 18. Approved dependants may work and study during their permitted stay, while continuing residence remains linked to sponsorship.
Qualifying spouses or partners and unmarried dependent children under 18 may apply. Approved dependants may work and study during permitted stay; extensions depend on continuing eligibility and sponsorship.
Hong Kong’s New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme allows applications for qualifying spouses or partners and unmarried dependent children under 18. The Immigration Department says approved dependants in this category may work and study during their permitted stay.[1]
Family planning starts with eligibility to join the application, then moves to work and education. Relationship eligibility, immigration approval and later extensions are connected decisions with different requirements.
Use the recognised relationship categories
The published scope includes specified civil partnerships, civil unions and same-sex marriages legally and officially recognised in the place of celebration. Ordinary cohabitation or engagement does not automatically qualify.[1]
The child category covers unmarried dependent children under 18. An adult university student does not qualify merely because the parents pay living costs. Parents are not included in this New CIES spouse-and-minor-child category.[1][2]
Prepare relationship records consistent with the application. Where adoption, custody or changed family circumstances are involved, identify the applicable requirements for the actual case.
Approved dependants may work and study
The permission applies within the valid limit of stay.[1] A spouse does not ordinarily need to switch to an employer-sponsored category merely to work as an approved New CIES dependant. Other requirements, such as professional registration for a regulated occupation, may still matter.
Permission to study does not guarantee school admission or a particular fee classification. Treat the immigration permission as one part of the plan, with the employer’s, institution’s and professional regulator’s requirements addressed separately.
Extensions remain connected to sponsorship
A dependant’s permitted stay normally follows the sponsor’s. Continued eligibility and the sponsor remaining a bona fide Hong Kong resident living in Hong Kong matter for extensions; changes in marriage or the sponsor’s death may affect sponsorship.[1]
Employment or school enrolment should not distract from expiry dates and renewal planning. A child approaching adulthood, changes in family relationships or prolonged time abroad warrant a case-specific check rather than assumptions based solely on the initial application.
Financial support is an application requirement
New CIES requires the applicant to demonstrate support and accommodation for the family without relying on specified investment returns, Hong Kong employment or the other income sources listed in the rules.[2] Permission to work after admission addresses a different question.
For example, a spouse may intend to seek a job after moving. The application should still demonstrate the family’s existing ability to support itself, rather than treating a hoped-for salary as established resources. Work, housing and school plans can fit together while the evidence for each requirement remains specific.
New CIES opened on 1 March 2024 and should be distinguished from the older scheme, which is closed to new applications.[3] Check the scheme name when selecting forms and guidance.
Official sources
This article provides general information, not individual legal, tax or investment advice. Applicable rules and the competent authority’s assessment govern each case.