Immigration to Macau

With the increase in prosperity and the expansion of the economy in Macau, there is a growing demand from all over the world for residency in the Special Administrative Region.

Immigration Categories

There are 4 categories for Macau Residency Application, including:

* Foreign investors currently engaged in manufacturing, services, hotels or similar industries

* Potential foreign investors who plan to invest in industrial units, service industries, hotel industries or similar industries

* Investment in fixed assets or other tangible productive assets - most notably is investment in real estate property

* Technical or "talent" immigrants - Management staff and professional technicians

Among the above, the third type is the most commonly used.

Criterion for investment in fixed assets

The criterion for investment in fixed assets is that the investment should not be less than MOP1 million (about USD125,000). The most popular form of investment in Macau is the acquisition of real estate of not less than MOP1 million. This investment should be by way of fund transferred from a country outside Macau and the relative bank loan, if any, should not be obtained in Macau or from a bank in Macau and the real estate is free from any mortgage or charge.

Applicants' spouses or co-inhibitors

According to the Investment Residency Law of Macau, such application may be extended to include the spouse of applicant, applicant's and his/ her spouse's parents and applicant's and his/ her spouse's minors. Therefore, a total of three families may be qualified under this scheme together with the main applicant. An interesting note to the definition of “spouse” under Macau law is that the term includes those who are legally declared by the court as separated couples and those who have “lived” with the applicant for more than two years. Therefore, co-inhibitors are also qualified.

Temporary residency card

If the application is approved by the relevant government body in Macau, a “Temporary Residency Card” will be issued to the applicant. This Temporary Residency Card will be valid for a maximum period of 18 months, if the application is under the category of investment project; or 3 years for other types of applications. They are renewable only if the above criteria is fulfilled. The residency will become permanent after seven years of temporary residency in Macau.

Exception

However, the Macau government will not accept any application from applicants who hold passports issued by Mainland China.

References

* [http://www.ipim.gov.mo/en/subpage.asp?include=residency/index.htm Residency schemes in Macau]