4 ms·

We also recently left the USA because one of our party is a UK citizen. We spent 6 months in the UK as US citizens with no problem, but when we came to the USA

by nirvana 15y ago

We also recently left the USA because one of our party is a UK citizen. We spent 6 months in the UK as US citizens with no problem, but when we came to the USA, we had to leave after 3 months, or send the UK resident co-founder out of the country at least. This visa thing is kinda absurd. What is the visa situation like in Hong Kong? I've read elsewhere that getting a visa for China is very difficult (this might be an area where HH is different from CN). Are you able to get reasonably long visas so that you can stay there indefinitely, or will you have to relocate again in 6 months or a year? FWIW, others have recommended Singapore, and one nice thing about Singapore is that they have a pro-entrepreneur Visa process, though it seems a bit focused on business that will be hiring singaporeans, so the traditional tiny consumer internet startup might have trouble meeting their requirements. Singapore is an expensive place to live, housing wise (though I hear food is super cheap and super plentiful with a massive "Street food"/mall-food-court culture).... though I imagine HK real estate isn't cheap either. The approach we're taking is that we're going places where our core costs are low-- apartment for the founders plus food, etc, and trying to make our funds last longer that way, and then working with people remotely to expand our staff.

josscrowcroft 15y ago
In HK you can dive in/out pretty much indefinitely, as long as you don't (and I really mean DON'T) overstay, even by 1 minute. My US friends have been doing it for two years, I'm English and have been doing it for 15 months (but we brits get 6 months at a time) They'll screw you if you overstay. tl;dr: HK != China.
- saryant 15y ago
  I'm curious, what counts as leaving HK? A quick hop on the ferry to Macao or do you have to go further like Taipei or Hanoi?
  - josscrowcroft 15y ago
    Most people do the Macau run, yeah. Air Asia flights are dirt cheap to e.g. Bangkok.
    - _delirium 15y ago
      So when you leave you don't have to stay out for a certain length of time, like the Schengen "no more than 90 days out of every 180 days" rule?
      - josscrowcroft 15y ago
        Not that I've ever experienced - for Brits, Yanks and Europeans. YMMV!
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
quant18 15y ago
Singapore is an expensive place to live, housing wise (though I hear food is super cheap and super plentiful with a massive "Street food"/mall-food-court culture).... though I imagine HK real estate isn't cheap either. Housing is expensive, yes, but you can live cheaply in HK if you're willing to adjust your standards downwards: you can get a tiny flat in a low-rent area without worrying about violent crime, you can eat at cheap diners or buy groceries at cheap wet markets without worrying about food-borne diseases, etc, owning a car is logistically & socially unnecessary, etc. Not everyone needs these guarantees but it helps if you're the kind of person who worries a lot =) What is the visa situation like in Hong Kong? I've read elsewhere that getting a visa for China is very difficult (this might be an area where HH is different from CN). Are you able to get reasonably long visas so that you can stay there indefinitely, or will you have to relocate again in 6 months or a year? HK Immigration Department is totally separate from mainland China. Different laws, different visa types, different procedures. It's not that hard to get a real visa here. ImmD is strict about their requirements but they are not mysterious, arbitrary, or painfully slow like USCIS. There is a self-sponsored employment visa (called "investment visa", but it doesn't require big capital investment, just a business plan). It does have to demonstrate some sort of benefit to locals, but that can be in terms of using local suppliers for goods and services, rather than hiring lots of local workers. There's also the QMAS visa, a sort of points-based skilled migration visa that gives you more flexibility. http://www.emigra.com.hk/hongkong/page76.php http://www.emigra.com.hk/hongkong/page76.php http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/QMAS.htm http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/QMAS.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_Migrant_Admission_Scheme http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_Migrant_Admission_Schem... Trying to work for your own company while on a tourist visa is a gamble. For 90 days you'll be okay. Longer term, some people have josscrowcroft's experience and go on visa runs for years without trouble. If you're low profile and don't compete with local companies the Immigration Dept. may ignore you. But others end up like this Aussie who came to HK to give a risk management seminar and got two months in prison followed by deportation for working illegally: http://news.sina.com.hk/news/2/1/1/2352180/1.html http://news.sina.com.hk/news/2/1/1/2352180/1.html If you decide to stay really longer term, the system is generally quite fair (at least to skilled workers and students; if you're a maid or construction worker it's a whole other kettle of fish): permanent residence takes seven years, but your "clock" doesn't reset if you change employers (e.g. if you get acquired and become an employee sponsored by your acquirer), and there's no ridiculous quota on how many PRs are approved each year. And once you have PR it's actually permanent: you can vote, you cannot be deported and there's no bullshit about "losing status" for filing a tax return as a non-resident or going back to your home country for a couple of years.

by nirvana 15y ago

josscrowcroft 15y ago

In HK you can dive in/out pretty much indefinitely, as long as you don't (and I really mean DON'T) overstay, even by 1 minute. My US friends have been doing it for two years, I'm English and have been doing it for 15 months (but we brits get 6 months at a time) They'll screw you if you overstay. tl;dr: HK != China.

saryant 15y ago
I'm curious, what counts as leaving HK? A quick hop on the ferry to Macao or do you have to go further like Taipei or Hanoi?
- josscrowcroft 15y ago
  Most people do the Macau run, yeah. Air Asia flights are dirt cheap to e.g. Bangkok.
  - _delirium 15y ago
    So when you leave you don't have to stay out for a certain length of time, like the Schengen "no more than 90 days out of every 180 days" rule?
    - josscrowcroft 15y ago
      Not that I've ever experienced - for Brits, Yanks and Europeans. YMMV!
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

quant18 15y ago

Singapore is an expensive place to live, housing wise (though I hear food is super cheap and super plentiful with a massive "Street food"/mall-food-court culture).... though I imagine HK real estate isn't cheap either. Housing is expensive, yes, but you can live cheaply in HK if you're willing to adjust your standards downwards: you can get a tiny flat in a low-rent area without worrying about violent crime, you can eat at cheap diners or buy groceries at cheap wet markets without worrying about food-borne diseases, etc, owning a car is logistically & socially unnecessary, etc. Not everyone needs these guarantees but it helps if you're the kind of person who worries a lot =) What is the visa situation like in Hong Kong? I've read elsewhere that getting a visa for China is very difficult (this might be an area where HH is different from CN). Are you able to get reasonably long visas so that you can stay there indefinitely, or will you have to relocate again in 6 months or a year? HK Immigration Department is totally separate from mainland China. Different laws, different visa types, different procedures. It's not that hard to get a real visa here. ImmD is strict about their requirements but they are not mysterious, arbitrary, or painfully slow like USCIS. There is a self-sponsored employment visa (called "investment visa", but it doesn't require big capital investment, just a business plan). It does have to demonstrate some sort of benefit to locals, but that can be in terms of using local suppliers for goods and services, rather than hiring lots of local workers. There's also the QMAS visa, a sort of points-based skilled migration visa that gives you more flexibility. http://www.emigra.com.hk/hongkong/page76.php http://www.emigra.com.hk/hongkong/page76.php http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/QMAS.htm http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/QMAS.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_Migrant_Admission_Scheme http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_Migrant_Admission_Schem... Trying to work for your own company while on a tourist visa is a gamble. For 90 days you'll be okay. Longer term, some people have josscrowcroft's experience and go on visa runs for years without trouble. If you're low profile and don't compete with local companies the Immigration Dept. may ignore you. But others end up like this Aussie who came to HK to give a risk management seminar and got two months in prison followed by deportation for working illegally: http://news.sina.com.hk/news/2/1/1/2352180/1.html http://news.sina.com.hk/news/2/1/1/2352180/1.html If you decide to stay really longer term, the system is generally quite fair (at least to skilled workers and students; if you're a maid or construction worker it's a whole other kettle of fish): permanent residence takes seven years, but your "clock" doesn't reset if you change employers (e.g. if you get acquired and become an employee sponsored by your acquirer), and there's no ridiculous quota on how many PRs are approved each year. And once you have PR it's actually permanent: you can vote, you cannot be deported and there's no bullshit about "losing status" for filing a tax return as a non-resident or going back to your home country for a couple of years.