Applying for QMAS? Check the criteria,
then see which documents you need
Work through the application in order: check eligibility, prepare your documents, apply online, respond to requests and arrange your first entry after approval.
New to the topic? Start with these guides
Start with the requirements, then see what to prepare and how to proceed.
Find the right assessment route
Start with prerequisites and the scope of the General and Achievement-based Points Tests.
Step 2Prepare evidence using the official checklist
Organise your and your dependants’ documents, supporting evidence and uploads.
Step 3Follow through after submission
Connect supplementary requests and status checks with approval and first entry.
Complete guides and resources
8 guides · Page 1. Open an article for the full text, steps, checklists and official sources.
After QMAS approval: your e-Visa and first arrival
Before booking the journey, check the decision notice, visa collection, travel documents and any required endorsements. After entry, record the date that actually governs your permitted stay.
- Follow the approval notice to pay applicable fees and collect your e-Visa. This PDF notice does not replace a valid travel document.
- Mainland Chinese residents, overseas Chinese citizens and other nationals have different travel-document arrangements. One checklist does not fit everyone.
- After arrival, check each family member’s actual permission and dates, and start a file for renewals and everyday evidence.
Applying for family members to join you under QMAS
Check who qualifies as a dependant, how to arrange a later arrival and who signs a child’s application. Keep relationship evidence, support, accommodation and each person’s paperwork in view.
- Eligibility depends on QMAS and dependant policies; not every relative qualifies to accompany you.
- Include accompanying family in the main online application. Family members coming later apply separately under the dependant procedure.
- A dependant’s permitted stay is generally linked to the sponsor’s, but each person still needs an application, documents and expiry records.
Assessing yourself under the General Points Test
Ticking a box is easy; checking what it means takes more care. Work through qualifications, languages, employment, income and business ownership, with attention to the evidence behind each claim.
- The current system uses 12 yes/no criteria and a threshold of six, rather than the former cumulative-points system.
- Prerequisites and the 12 criteria are separate requirements. A bachelor’s degree may meet the basic education requirement without meeting the master’s or doctoral-degree criteria.
- Record evidence, dates, awarding institutions or employers, and verification methods as you assess yourself. Do not count qualifications you have not yet obtained.
Completing the QMAS online application
A missing employment date can interrupt the form; an unclear payment screen can leave you unsure whether it went through. Prepare your information, check attachments and keep the records that confirm submission.
- Enter through the official Immigration Department QMAS page and follow the current service and Guidance Notes rather than old-system tutorials.
- Check eligibility, evidence and dependants before starting. Formats, file limits and available functions are those displayed by the system.
- Application fees and post-approval visa issuance fees arise at different stages. Save all submission and payment records.
Gathering the documents for your QMAS application
Build a file that supports what you actually declare. This guide works through identity, net assets, qualification verification, employment records and translations, including differences in names, dates and amounts.
- Start with Part III of ID(C) 982, July 2026, then adapt to your claimed criteria and family circumstances.
- Documents should establish specific facts. CVs, self-made charts and personal statements do not replace required third-party evidence.
- The naming, indexing and checking methods below are our suggestions, not additional formats prescribed by the department.
Making your achievements clear under the Achievement-based Points Test
A certificate or a long CV may leave important questions unanswered. Explain the award, your own contribution, recognition from peers and the impact of your work through evidence others can check.
- This exceptionally demanding route requires either a major achievement award or evidence of peer recognition or a significant contribution to your field.
- Prominent work, patents and references are possible forms of evidence; none automatically establishes eligibility.
- A chain linking achievement, personal role, external recognition and verification is more useful than simply adding attachments.
Preparing a QMAS application, from eligibility to arrival
Work out where to start, which documents may take time to obtain, and what still needs doing after approval. Use this guide to plan around your work and family circumstances.
- A standard new application does not require a Hong Kong job offer, but you must meet the prerequisites and pass assessment under your chosen mechanism.
- The General Points Test currently has 12 criteria and a threshold of six. Meeting that threshold does not guarantee approval.
- Organise evidence and a budget around your family circumstances before applying online. Approval must still be followed by visa collection and any applicable travel formalities.
Replying to a QMAS document request and checking progress
Identify what the notice is asking and which records answer it. Keep track of your response, and distinguish evidence of existing facts from asking to be assessed on new circumstances.
- Follow the department’s requested questions, channel and deadline. There is no universal supplementary-document pack required in every case.
- Substantiating previously existing facts differs from seeking assessment based on changed circumstances after submission.
- Official online and telephone status services are available after acknowledgement, but “being processed” does not establish an approval date.