Hong Kong Visa Geeza | Hong Kong Visas Made Easy

03

Jun 2017

10 Steps to a Successful Hong Kong Entrepreneur Visa Application – Must Have Resources

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Investment Visas, Musing / No responses

On April 21, 2017 I gave a talk at WYND Co-working space in Lan Kwai Fong entitled 10 Steps to a Successful Hong Kong Entrepreneur Visa Application.

This short video discusses how the anchor to this talk is a post in our website called Must Have Resources for this type of visa application

PRACTICE UPDATE: How the content must now be read in light of current ImmD policy:

Historically, this foundational installment in the 10-step series cataloged the essential toolkit and preparation materials needed to assemble a winning entrepreneur visa bundle without wasting money on costly advisory retainers. The Geeza pointed founders toward accessible, practical tools: the standard ID999A and ID999B application forms, business plan templates tailored to the General Employment Policy, the official Guidebook for Entry for Investment, and publicly available lists of accredited incubator programs. In that era, “must-have resources” were essentially administrative, narrative, and legal blueprints designed to help an articulate founder tell a persuasive story—demonstrating that with modest seed capital of a few hundred thousand dollars, a flexible serviced office address, and a credible roadmap for gradual local hiring over two to three years, an applicant could confidently marshal their own paperwork and clear ImmD’s discretionary threshold.

The game has changed from assembling a persuasive paper toolkit into mobilizing massive, non-negotiable balance-sheet and real-estate assets. ImmD no longer approves entrepreneur visas on the strength of well-crafted business plans, template forms, or narrative justifications of potential economic value. Under post-April 2026 administrative practice aligned with TTPS Category A operational substance (~HKD 2.5M enterprise scale), the true “must-have resources” are immediate, empirical corporate hardware: HKD 1.5M–2.0M in deployed corporate bank liquidity sitting in a local bank account, an executed commercial lease for exclusive physical premises (“four walls”) disqualifying serviced offices and co-working desks entirely, and active Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) payroll contributions for 2–3 local permanent residents on day one. Unless an applicant holds the single qualifying paper resource that legally waives these thresholds—an official letter of admission into an accredited government incubator (such as Cyberport or HKSTP)—relying on traditional application kits and narrative templates will result in swift and summary refusal.

The Rest of the Series

Introduction

How We Got Here

Must Have Resources

The Startup Visa

Step 1 – Understand Policy

Step 2 – Do You Have a Visa Problem?

Step 3 – Are You An Employee?

Step 4 – A Substantial Contribution?

Step 5 – 3 Crucial Elements

Step 6 – Have You Got Enough $$?

Step 7 – A Properly Set Up Office

Step 8 – Creating Local Jobs

Step 9 – Economic Sector Advantages?

Step 10 – D-I-Y Application

DOWNLOADS

Presentation Slides

Accredited Startup Programmes in Hong Kong

More Stuff You May Find Useful or Interesting

Are there any advantages to being an existing resident of Hong Kong when making an application for an investment visa?

Newcomers guide to getting a Hong Kong employment visa (Infographic)

Can I employ myself by getting a Hong Kong investment visa?

Sometimes large employers experience Hong Kong employment visa application refusals – why might this be so?

The merits of applying for the Reconsideration of a refused Hong Kong visa application

Share This

Please select the social network you want to share this page with:

16

May 2017

10 Steps to a Successful Hong Kong Entrepreneur Visa Application – How We Got Here

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Investment Visas, Musing / No responses

On April 21, 2017 I gave a talk at WYND Co-working space in Lan Kwai Fong entitled 10 Steps to a Successful Hong Kong Entrepreneur Visa Application.

PRACTICE UPDATE: How the content must now be read in light of current ImmD policy:

Historically, this introductory context piece in the 10-step series traced the policy origins and administrative trajectory of Hong Kong’s investment as entrepreneur regime, explaining the rationale behind the 2015 Enhancement Measures and the 2016 Audit Commission Report No. 66. The Geeza provided founders with crucial historical perspective, showing how ImmD had transitioned from opaque, ad-hoc assessments toward a more structured statutory framework centered on assessing “substantial contribution.” Yet, throughout this evolutionary period, the operational heart of the policy remained grounded in practical commercial leeway: case officers continued to exercise broad administrative discretion, welcoming foreign founders of lean, bootstrapped ventures who brought modest seed funding of a few hundred thousand dollars, operated flexibly from serviced offices or co-working spaces, and planned to gradually hire local staff over a multi-year horizon.

The game has changed from an evolutionary administrative history into an abrupt, unforgiving institutional reset. The historical narrative of gradual bureaucratic adjustments and administrative tolerance for lean startups has been decisively closed. Under post-April 2026 administrative practice aligned with TTPS Category A operational substance (~HKD 2.5M enterprise scale), ImmD no longer treats entrepreneur policy as a nurturing, discretionary mechanism for early-stage commercial aspirations. Adjudication is now governed by an unyielding empirical audit requiring day-one corporate hardware: HKD 1.5M–2.0M in deployed corporate bank liquidity, an executed commercial lease for exclusive physical premises (“four walls”) disqualifying serviced offices and co-working desks entirely, and active Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) payroll contributions for 2–3 local permanent residents. Unless an applicant holds formal admission into an officially accredited government incubator (such as Cyberport or HKSTP), relying on the historical context of administrative leniency will result in swift and summary refusal.

This short video sets out the background to the entrepreneur vs startup visa situation which prevails in Hong Kong today.