“Investment immigration” is rapidly increasing, with a growing trend in choosing “overseas real estate” investments and a large number of “overseas home-buying groups.” The latest survey by the Center for China and Globalization (CCG) shows that there is a new trend in Chinese overseas investment immigration and investment directions, with the investment capabilities of Chinese enterprises and individual families and international financial strategies beginning to emerge.
“In recent years, the term ‘investment immigration’ has appeared more frequently, and its increasing proportion in immigration is a prominent phenomenon in the current wave of Chinese overseas immigration,” said Wang Huiyao, Director of the Center for China and Globalization.
The latest survey results from the Center for China and Globalization show that in the past three years, the number of Chinese investment immigrants to the United States has rapidly increased. In 2010, only 772 people obtained conditional EB-5 green cards, which increased to 2,408 in 2011.
According to the latest data from the U.S. Department of State, the number of people obtaining conditional EB-5 green cards in 2012 was 6,124, which is 2.5 times that of 2011 and 7.9 times that of 2010.
Data released by the think tank on the 21st shows that in 2011, Chinese individuals with investable assets exceeding 6 million yuan owned approximately 33 trillion yuan in assets in China, of which 2.8 trillion yuan had already been transferred overseas, accounting for about 3% of China’s GDP in 2011. In terms of the destinations for asset transfers among the wealthy class, Hong Kong, the United States, and Canada have become the main concentrations, accounting for 22%, 21%, and 16%, respectively, followed by Switzerland (9%), Singapore (6%), and Australia (5%).
Along with the rapid growth of investment immigration, “overseas real estate” is also increasing rapidly. Data from the Center for China and Globalization shows that since 2011, Chinese people have become the second largest group of overseas real estate buyers in the United States. In popular overseas real estate cities such as Toronto, Canada, and London, United Kingdom, 20% to 40% of foreign buyers are from China. Last year, Chinese overseas home buying was unprecedentedly active, with Chinese real estate buyers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and other countries rapidly becoming a new customer group in the local real estate market, referred to as the “Chinese home-buying group.”
It is worth noting that environmental pollution is becoming an important reason driving the wave of overseas immigration. The survey by the Center for China and Globalization found that environmental and healthcare factors are the two main reasons for Chinese immigration, with nearly 70% of respondents considering these to be significant factors leading to their immigration.
Wang Huiyao introduced that as of 2013, the stock of Chinese overseas immigrants had reached 9.343 million, an increase of 128.6% over 23 years. China has risen from the seventh largest emigration country in 1990 to the fourth largest emigration country.
Statistics from the Center for China and Globalization show that the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are traditional immigration countries and also the main destination countries for new Chinese immigrants. In 2012, the number of Chinese people obtaining permanent residency in these four countries was 81,784, 33,018, 29,547, and 7,723, respectively, totaling 152,072.
In 2012, the number of Chinese obtaining U.S. permanent residency visas was 81,784. This refers to Chinese citizens from mainland China, accounting for 7.9% of the total number of permanent residency visas.
Data released by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services shows that in 2013, over three-quarters of the investment immigration visas issued in the United States were granted to Chinese nationals.
According to Wang Huiyao, the global immigrant population reached 232 million in 2013, accounting for 4.2% of the world’s total population, an increase of 18 million from 214 million in 2010 and an increase of 37 million from 195 million in 2005. From 2000 to 2013, the average annual growth rate of the immigrant population was 2.2%.
For many years, the flow to developed regions has been a major trend in international migration. From 1990 to 2013, immigration to North America was most pronounced, with the proportion of immigrants rising from 18% to 23%; the proportion of immigrants in the Middle East and North Africa increased from 10% to 14%; while the proportions in the Asia-Pacific region, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Latin America-Mediterranean region all declined.
However, Wang Huiyao believes that immigration is no longer a zero-sum game, and both the emigration and immigration countries can benefit. Statistics from the Center for China and Globalization show that in 2012, international remittances back to China exceeded 400 billion U.S. dollars.
Associate Professor Pang Lihua from Peking University’s Population Research Institute stated that the current migration flow is not only from “developing countries” to “developed countries,” but also shows a new trend of migration from “developed countries” to “developing countries.”
Due to the impact of the financial crisis, the phenomenon of immigrant return has begun to increase. The return of immigrants, mainly students, is also evident in countries such as China, India, and Japan, which are major sources of international students. An increasing number of personnel from developed countries are moving to developing countries in search of business and educational opportunities.
However, according to Wang Huiyao, a new class of “new immigrants” has emerged among Chinese overseas, and the phenomenon of “immigration deficit” is quite evident. Data from 2010 shows that China’s immigration deficit is on the rise; although the inflow population is gradually increasing, it is far less than the outflow population. By 2013, China’s immigration deficit reached approximately 8.494 million people.
