Hong Kong — The Expats Hub

31 Aug 2017

3 mins read

This article covers:

Hong Kong is one of the most significant global financial centers according to Wikipedia. Expats are fascinated to work in Hong Kong due to the developed infrastructure and quality standard of living. Hong Kong has an area of 1,104 sq. km (426 sq. mi) and this is growing every year due to on-going land reclamation.

General things expats should know about Hong Kong:

The legal framework of Hong Kong is controlled by the Hong Kong government, even though Hong Kong is a part of China.
Domestic help is said to be cheap in Hong Kong because citizens of under developed/developing nations constantly look to settle down in Hong Kong for improved standard of living, handsome salaries, convenient transportation and many more reasons.
Hong Kong has been listed as the most expensive place to live according to international consulting firm Mercer, however the luxurious lifestyle one gets potentially makes it worth it.
The unemployment rate in Hong Kong was 3.4 percent as of March 2016 as per Trading Economics.
In order to get an employment visa, the applicant typically needs to have an offer letter from a company which is in good standing by the Hong Kong government.
Do learn Chinese before you settle down in Hong Kong, as more than half of the population speaks Chinese. Even the billboards around the country are in the local language so you can’t even shop and eat without a Chinese speaking friend!
The transport system in Hong Kong is highly developed and safe. Based on the Hong Kong Government’s Travel Characteristics Survey, over 90% of the daily journeys are on public transport, the highest rate in the world.
Majority of Hong Kong citizens are Buddhists and Taoists.

Population of Hong Kong according to ethnic group:

According to the 2011 census, 92.6% of the Hong Kong population is ethnic Chinese and 7.4% are other ethnic groups (refer the chart below). The total population of Hong Kong stood at 7,071,576.

(**Note**: The above chart excludes the population of ethnic Chinese group which totals to 6,320,393)

Sending money home from Hong Kong:

Most Expats look for banks/remittance firms which can transfer their money faster and cheaper. Instarem is a money remittance firm which transfers money from Hong Kong with zero remittance fees and typically within 1 or 2 business days. The vision of Instarem is to simplify the global movement of money in a cost efficient manner. Expats can save anywhere between $1 to $20 vs a typical bank on HKD 1000 transfer. Clients can transfer money to and from these countries via Instarem: