New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme
MR CHAN CHUN-YING:
President, applicants under CIES and their families who come to live in Hong Kong will contribute to the local economy through their expenses on accommodation, education and food consumption. I would like to ask whether the number of immediate family members that applicants can bring with them under the new scheme will remain the same as before, or whether there will be some new ideas, such as allowing a higher number of family members to accompany applicants based on their investment amount. Thank you, President.
SECRETARY FOR FINANCIAL SERVICES AND THE TREASURY:
Thank you, President. I also thank the Member for his supplementary question. Our new scheme will be based on the framework and application criteria of the original CIES. Under the previous scheme, applicants could bring with them their dependants, that is, their spouse and unmarried dependant children under the age of 18, to Hong Kong. This aspect will be similar to that of the previous scheme, where as long as applicants meet the eligibility criteria to come to Hong Kong, they can bring their dependants with them. The old scheme does not mean that the more the investment made by the applicants, the more the family members they can bring with them. Instead, after the eligibility of the applicants is approved, the number of family members they can bring with them will be based on the eligibility of their dependants. Thank you, President.