“Price hikes” have become the keyword in the current immigration market. Following Australia's cancellation of the 163B visa category in May and Canada's federal program price increase in June, Singapore recently significantly raised its investment immigration threshold, and there are also rumors of price increases for Hong Kong investment immigration.
Over the past few months, the aftereffects of changes in immigration policies across various countries have become apparent. Many immigration agencies are “facing a crisis,” with clients being blocked by high thresholds, leading to a decline in business of up to 70% for many firms. Driven by survival crises, many immigration agencies have begun to “cross boundaries,” shifting to other immigration services they were not originally familiar with, and quietly initiating price wars. Industry experts state that this is a sign of industry consolidation. It is recommended to prioritize qualifications and experience when choosing an immigration agency.
Business for some companies has declined by more than 70%
Since the beginning of this year, various countries have raised their immigration thresholds, with some countries doubling or even tripling their capital requirements. For instance, the investment requirement for Singapore's investment immigration has increased from the original 1.5 million SGD to 2.5 million SGD, while the requirement for business turnover has surged by 300%. In response, most immigration clients have adopted a wait-and-see attitude.
The rise in investment immigration thresholds has led to a rapid decline in the number of people processing related immigration services, causing the business volume of some immigration companies to shrink sharply and making operations difficult.
Consultants from some immigration agencies admit that since the price hike in Australia, many immigration agencies have been directly impacted. In particular, the higher threshold for Canada's federal nomination program has caused the business volume of some immigration companies to drop by as much as 70% or more.
It is also reported that although the recent price hike in Singapore left a certain window for market reaction, this time was extremely limited. Under normal circumstances, it takes about 2 to 3 weeks from submitting materials to obtaining a file number. Many applicants, in a rush to meet deadlines, have haphazardly chosen companies to handle their cases. However, more people have chosen to wait and see.
“Crossing boundaries” and competing on low prices disrupt the industry
“Faced with survival dilemmas, some companies lacking strength are forced to ‘cross boundaries,’ taking risks to accept orders for immigration countries and regions where they have no prior experience,” experts explain. Likewise, because they lack professional technical experience, competing on low prices has become the only weapon for such agencies. Naturally, this practice has severely disrupted the industry's pricing system.
In this regard, senior industry insiders analyze that under these circumstances, in order to “make one last profit,” some immigration companies sell “promises” cheaply. Whether they can actually handle the cases is not their concern; they just want to put the client's money into their own pockets, and when you go to find them after the promised deadline, they have already vanished. Therefore, the more frequent the policy changes, the more inevitable the industry consolidation becomes.
“Compared to ‘low profits,’ this is the true ‘disaster’ for the immigration industry.” Experts believe this is only the growing pain before consolidation; after these pains, companies with real strength will prevail.
Recommendation
Choose an agency based on qualifications and, more importantly, experience
Regarding the chaos in immigration agencies caused by changes in immigration policy, immigration consultants state that one must choose qualified immigration agencies when applying for immigration. One should also evaluate them based on various aspects, such as whether they have established overseas branches, their processing time, and their successful case history, rather than relying solely on price factors.
“Competition among immigration companies is extremely fierce. Poor companies will be eliminated after operating for 2-3 years, while companies that have been operating in the industry for over ten years are relatively strong.”
Experts also indicate that the immigration market is about to undergo consolidation, and companies lacking service capabilities face elimination. At this critical juncture of significantly raised immigration thresholds, to reduce unnecessary costs, applicants should, on one hand, play a “time game” and not be impatient; on the other hand, they should remain calm under pressure, choose agencies carefully, and first look at strength and qualifications, and second at project success experience.
Some industry experts also suggest that the urgent priority is to establish an industry association for immigration agencies to regulate the market, encourage healthy competition, and avoid price wars.
