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Hongkongers get easier pathway to permanent Canadian residency after outcry by older graduates

  • Hongkongers can apply for permanent residency after working in country for one year and will no longer need postsecondary education to be eligible
  • Change comes after outcry by some applicants that previous youth-focused policy was unfair to immigrants who had long since left university

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Canada has the lowest barrier to entry for Hongkongers among Western nations that have set up pathways to permanent residency. Photo: Shutterstock
William YiuandConnor Mycroft
Canada will ease its pathway to permanent residency for Hongkongers by removing all educational requirements for those who have worked in the country for a year following an outcry by some applicants that the previous youth-focused policy was unfair to immigrants who had long since left university.

The move is expected to lure more skilled workers from the city at a time when the Hong Kong government is trying to stem a brain drain through a number of its own immigration schemes aimed at attracting talent, according to immigration and human resources experts. But the overall impact of Ottawa’s new approach on Hong Kong’s labour pool would be minimal, some predicted.

Ottawa on Tuesday said Hongkongers could apply for permanent residency after working in the country for at least a year and no longer needed postsecondary education to be eligible. Experience under Canada’s working holiday scheme will also count. Previously only residents who had obtained degrees in the past five years were eligible to apply.

The new arrangement comes into effect on August 15.

The departure hall at Hong Kong International Airport. Canada, Britain and Australia created special immigration pathways for Hongkongers following Beijing’s imposition of the national security law in 2020. Photo: Yik Yeung-man
The departure hall at Hong Kong International Airport. Canada, Britain and Australia created special immigration pathways for Hongkongers following Beijing’s imposition of the national security law in 2020. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

“Removing this requirement means more Hongkongers who have worked in Canada will be eligible for permanent residency, easing the transition to permanent status for those who are already working in Canada under the open work permit programme,” Paul Chiang, parliamentary secretary to the minister of housing and diversity and inclusion, said on behalf of the immigration minister.

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