Hong Kong at a Glance

Moving to Hong Kong

Former British colony Hong Kong became a Chinese special administrative region in 1997.

You’ll be moving to Hong Kong? Congratulations! This step offers you the chance to explore a buzzing metropolis with a diverse population and an excellent expat infrastructure. The InterNations City Guide introduces you to Hong Kong, its economy, job market, foreign community, and visa regulations.

People have been moving to Hong Kong from all over the world for a long time. The former British colony located on China’s southern coast has traditionally served as a bridge between East and West. It has been combining ancient Chinese customs with the traditions of those moving to Hong Kong from abroad. Here, expats get the best out of both worlds: a progressive, liberal economy as well as the traditional Chinese way of life.

During the last decades, the city has experienced tremendous economic growth. Today, moving to Hong Kong means getting ready to live in one of the world’s most modern megacities. When you move to Hong Kong, you will definitely be pleased with the excellent infrastructure. Therefore, it is not surprising that there are thousands of foreigners who move to Hong Kong every year – and many more who dream of it.

Moving to Hong Kong: Political Situation

You are probably aware of the profound change which took place in Hong Kong’s status in 1997. In that year, Britain handed over its former colony to the People’s Republic of China. When moving to Hong Kong, however, you notice pretty quickly that daily life is very different from that in Mainland China.

“One country, two systems” is a catchphrase which you will hear quite often. When moving to Hong Kong, you officially enter China’s territory. Still, as a so-called Special Administrative Region, this city gets to retain its own capitalist economy and its (more liberal) political system.

While in Mainland China the human rights situation remains problematic, the situation is quite different when you move to Hong Kong. The constitution protects citizens’ basic rights and freedoms, such as freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Although there have been concerns about possible interference by Mainland China after the handover, Hong Kong has largely been able to retain its independence. However, just like China, it lacks universal suffrage.

Move to Hong Kong: Current Economic

Many expats moving to Hong Kong are attracted by the country’s legendary economic growth. Between 1961 and 1997 alone, the city’s per-capita GDP increased 87 times over. When moving to Hong Kong, you’ll experience what Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman once described as “the world’s greatest experiment in laissez-faire capitalism”.

Even after the handover to China, moving to Hong Kong means living in the world’s freest economy. Many multinational companies keep on moving to Hong Kong to establish their regional headquarters. The city combines Chinese cultural traditions with an enterprise-friendly economic system which guarantees rule of law and transparency. Thus, moving to Hong Kong is the ideal stepping stone for both companies and expats that decide to set foot on the Asian market.

Although, you may be in for a decent culture shock, don’t let this put you off. Many expats discover that the hospitality of the people and the experience of moving to Hong Kong more than compensates for their initial difficulties.

Moving to Hong Kong: Expat Life

For those considering Hong Kong as their new home-to-be, it is important to first get an overview of the way of life which awaits expats moving to Hong Kong. Expat life in Hong Kong has been very popular for decades, especially among British citizens. The country’s status as a British colony and member of the Commonwealth until 1997 have made it a major expat destination before the concept of expatriation reached its current level of popularity.

Nowadays, surveys continue to rank Hong Kong among the friendliest destinations for expats worldwide. Expat numbers have been declining in recent years, due to increasingly high prices and global economic recession. Still, Hong Kong remains the home of a significant expat population, with the majority of them coming from Great Britain, the United States, and Australia.