The Zhitong Finance App learned that the Hong Kong Financial Services and Treasury Bureau said that it has been more than two and a half years since the implementation of the New Capital Investor Entry Scheme (CIES). By the end of October this year, it had received more than 5,000 applications, which is expected to bring more than HK$150 billion in investment amounts to Hong Kong. At present, more than 3,000 applications have been verified and officially approved for investment.
The Treasury Department posted on its social media page that since implementing the plan in March 2024, it has continued to attract high-net-worth individuals and capital from around the world to settle in Hong Kong. In recent years, capital investors and family offices have all recorded strong growth.
According to CIES regulations, eligible applicants are required to invest at least HK$30 million in permitted investment assets, of which at least HK$27 million must be invested in permitted financial assets or real estate (up to HK$10 million for residential properties; HK$15 million for non-residential properties), and HK$3 million must be invested in the “Capital Investor Entry Scheme Investment Portfolio” established and managed by Hong Kong Investment Management Limited.
The HKSAR Government has successively implemented a series of optimization measures. In order to create a more competitive tax environment, legislative proposals to optimize the preferential tax system for funds, family investment control tools and ancillary benefits have been submitted to the Legislative Council earlier.
The Treasury Bureau stated that in view of the comments received during the review of the bill, the HKSAR Government will propose amendments, including easing the maximum investment amount of “precious metals” as eligible investments that are exempt from tax exemption to 20%; expanding the definition of “fund” to include “perpetual funds” without a funding deadline, etc. The authorities expect this move to respond to industry demands and provide greater flexibility and convenience for funds and family offices. The goal is to pass the relevant draft regulations within this year.