In case you missed The View From The Top, here is the Immigration update from Fragomen's Julia Onslow Cole with a focus on Asia Pacific.
Firstly, China is currently encouraging inward investment, and there are no barriers to immigration. However, getting flights into China is proving to be a challenge due to a lack of capacity caused by job losses during the pandemic. Flights are currently expensive and difficult to book, and it's important to book as early as possible to save costs.
Long-term assignees to China are not yet returning in large numbers, but there has been a surge in short-term business visitors. Companies are tending to send their people on short-term business trips instead of large assignments. Additionally, Chinese citizens are traveling to Europe and elsewhere for training and business trips.
Another important trend is that rents and hotel costs in China are now back to normal. During the pandemic, there were some amazing bargains to be had, but now that real estate is starting to increase, costs are back to pre-pandemic levels.
Travel between China and Hong Kong has also increased, with the introduction of a new high-speed train that makes travel quicker and more efficient. Hong Kong has also recently brought back the investor visa, creating a lot of interest from people living in mainland China.
You can watch Julia's complete update here:
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Previous immigration updates can be accessed here.
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