2023 is the first year of the post-pandemic era. With the comprehensive lifting of entry and exit policies, what adjustments will be made to the immigration policies of various countries (regions) around the world? What trends will the overseas investment immigration market follow? After careful research and analysis, and by gauging the development trends of immigration policies in various countries while consulting with immigration experts and investors, WorldWay Group has released the "Six Major Immigration Trends for 2023." This marks the 8th consecutive year since 2015 that WorldWay Group has forecasted immigration trends.
1、Canada's immigration processing efficiency will improve in 2023, and the number of immigration applications will continue to rise
2023 is the first year of implementation following the third update of Canada's "Million Immigration Plan." Over the next three years, Canada will accept a total of 1.45 million new immigrants. Furthermore, to promote long-term economic growth in the post-pandemic era and address labor shortages and low birth rates, Canada's policy direction of absorbing immigrants will not change. At the same time, Canada increased favorable measures to welcome new immigrants in 2022, such as the resumption of all-category invitations for the federal Express Entry (EE) system, allowing the Minister of Immigration to directly invite candidates; announcing the upgrade of the "Super Visa" program to facilitate the reunion of citizens and permanent residents with their parents and grandparents, etc.; and the Canadian immigration department has enabled digital immigration applications and will continue to increase staffing and optimize processes to improve processing efficiency. In addition, Canada's Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) quotas will increase by 20% in 2023, with provincial nominations adapting to labor needs based on regional conditions, making immigration more convenient for certain industries. With these various benefits, Canada's immigration processing efficiency will improve in 2023, and the number of immigration applications will continue to rise.
2、U.S. employment-based immigration visa quotas for fiscal year 2023 will increase significantly, and EB-5 visa set-aside projects without backlogs will be highly popular
According to the visa quota report for fiscal year 2023 released by the U.S. Department of State, the employment-based immigration visa quota is 197,000, an increase of about 60,000 from the normal annual quota of 140,000. The EB-5 visa category will be allocated 13,987 visas from the total quota, of which 4,476 are set-aside visas. According to the new legislation, 6,396 unused set-aside visas from fiscal year 2022 were transferred to the same category for the following year; therefore, the total number of EB-5 set-aside visas for fiscal year 2023 reached 10,872. Over the past three years, the EB-5 program has been affected by backlogs, the suspension of the Regional Center Program, and the pandemic, causing market demand for U.S. immigration to be significantly suppressed. 2023 is the second year after the restart of the EB-5 Regional Center Program and the first year of the post-pandemic era; this pent-up rigid demand for U.S. immigration will be significantly released. According to the latest visa bulletin released by the Department of State, the EB-5 visa set-aside category currently remains without a backlog, and EB-5 set-aside visa projects without backlogs will be highly popular. According to the new legislation, projects in Targeted Employment Areas (TEA) enjoy a 10% visa set-aside, rural projects enjoy a 20% set-aside, and infrastructure projects enjoy a 2% set-aside. It is foreseeable that with limited quotas for urban TEA projects without backlogs, more investors are expected to focus on rural projects with more set-aside visa quotas, especially high-quality rural projects which will be in high demand.
3、Hong Kong accelerates the global talent war, and multiple benefits may trigger a record high in Hong Kong immigration applications
In 2023, under the multiple benefits of Hong Kong's accelerated global talent war, Hong Kong immigration applications are entering a golden period. The Hong Kong government has announced a series of favorable immigration policies, such as: canceling the two-year quota limit for the "Quality Migrant Admission Scheme"; simplifying the renewal process for talent admission schemes; reviewing and updating the current Talent List industry categories in the first quarter of 2023 to reflect the latest shortages of professional and technical talent in different fields; clarifying that between 2023 and 2025, at least 35,000 talents who are expected to stay in Hong Kong for 12 months will be attracted annually through talent admission schemes; and launching the "Top Talent Pass Scheme" to attract high-income individuals and graduates from the world's top 100 universities to settle and work in Hong Kong. At the same time, the Hong Kong Immigration Department has fully implemented electronic services, bringing unprecedented convenience to the vast number of immigration applicants. In addition, given the needs of Hong Kong's economic recovery and development in the post-pandemic era, the Hong Kong Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, which had been suspended for 7 years since January 15, 2015, is expected to restart in 2023. The restarted scheme may be adjusted to adapt to the new situation. Under these circumstances, the volume of Hong Kong immigration applications may reach a new record high in 2023.
4、The EU tightens "Golden Visas," and the Portugal real estate investment immigration project will be highly sought after
In 2023, EU countries have basically lifted pandemic controls, social life has fully returned to normal, and powerful measures to promote economic development will be introduced to cope with the economic recession that may be faced in the post-pandemic era. However, this does not mean that the "Golden Visa" investment immigration policy will be relaxed. Since the European Parliament issued a serious warning to EU citizenship-by-investment projects in 2022, urging all EU member states to ban "Golden Passport" schemes by 2025 and stating that stricter regulations will be implemented for "Golden Visas," including stricter vetting of applicants, the tightening measures for Golden Residence Visas will be promoted with greater intensity in 2023. The Portugal Golden Residence Permit Program is one of the few convenient ways in the market to obtain EU citizenship at a low cost and is in compliance with the EU Charter. Investors only need to purchase properties starting from 280,000 euros that meet regulatory requirements to apply for Portugal Golden Residence status for three generations of their family. After meeting the conditions, they can apply for naturalization in Portugal and obtain a Portuguese EU passport. Coupled with the advantages of low thresholds for Portugal's real estate investment immigration, a good social environment, and a friendly tax system, it has attracted more and more investors from countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil, with Chinese investors continuing to lead. It is foreseeable that in 2023, the Portugal Golden Residence Permit Program will further heat up, and the Portugal real estate investment immigration project will be highly sought after.
5、Global immigration mobility will strengthen in the post-pandemic era, driving a surge in demand for identity configuration
The global fight against the pandemic has finally seen the dawn after three years. With the comprehensive lifting of entry and exit policies, some investors with long-term plans will accelerate their immigration preparations for the post-pandemic era. At the same time, global immigration destination countries (regions) have fully relaxed entry bans, and international travel between China and relevant immigration destination countries (regions) will gradually return to normal. The past focus on completing immigration procedures without leaving the country will change, international travel for immigration purposes will gradually increase, and more and more people may begin to restart their identity configuration plans. Regardless of the purpose, the goals of immigration differ, and the choice of immigration destination naturally differs as well. The three-year pandemic experience has changed many people's mindsets and also changed people's demand for a second identity. Not only are people from developed countries moving to other developed countries, but people from less developed countries are also beginning to move among each other. It is foreseeable that in 2023, as the world enters the post-pandemic era, investors will rethink their second home, re-select their place of residence, and global immigration mobility will strengthen, driving a surge in demand for identity configuration.
6、In the post-pandemic era, more families will combine children's education planning with family immigration planning, triggering diversified immigration choices for educational purposes
In 2023, entering the post-pandemic era, immigration demand that was hindered by the pandemic will see restorative growth. Over the past three years, affected by the pandemic, many families gave up studying abroad out of concern for their children's safety. In 2023, more qualified families will reconsider letting their children study abroad, and even families who have never had children study abroad will consider international routes for their children's education planning. Among them, there are four choices for those whose purpose is studying abroad: first, choosing countries with developed education and feasible immigration policies that can solve children's education in one step, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and other traditional major immigration countries; second, choosing the overseas Chinese student route, such as residence permit projects in EU countries like Portugal, Greece, Malta, and Cyprus; third, choosing the international student route, such as fast-track passport projects in Commonwealth countries like Saint Lucia and Saint Kitts, as well as European countries like Turkey; fourth, the Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan student route, such as choosing Hong Kong immigration, which not only allows access to high-quality local education in Hong Kong but also allows access to British-style international education, with more choices for future higher education. In 2023, educational demand driven by studying abroad will continue to be an important consideration for investors choosing immigration in the post-pandemic era. Children's education planning for educational purposes will be more closely integrated with family immigration planning, prompting more diversified immigration choices for educational purposes.
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*The above information is for reference only and does not serve as a basis for investment. Investment involves risks, and choices should be made with caution*