IANG visa Hong Kong: stay and work after graduating

The Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates (IANG) let people who came to Hong Kong to study, and graduated from a full-time degree-level programme here, stay on or come back to work. Graduates of joint Greater Bay Area campuses can use it too. The one date that matters is your graduation: apply within six months of it and ImmD does not ask for a job offer.

Who can apply under IANG

ImmD’s IANG page covers two groups:

• Non-local graduates who obtained an undergraduate or higher qualification in a full-time, locally accredited programme in Hong Kong.
• GBA campus graduates who obtained an undergraduate or higher qualification in a full-time programme offered by a higher education institution in a Mainland city of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, jointly established by Mainland and Hong Kong universities.

For nationals of Laos, Nepal and Vietnam, ImmD limits IANG to full-time, locally accredited programmes at undergraduate level or above offered by UGC-funded institutions. Check the IANG page for any other nationality notes before you apply.

Recent and non-recent graduates

The processing times run from when ImmD has every required document and the application fee. ImmD warns that the summer rush between June and August can take longer, so do not leave the application to the last weeks of your plans.

GBA campus graduates follow the same six-month split. A recent GBA campus graduate does not need a job offer and may be granted 24 months on time limitation only, provided normal immigration requirements are met. A GBA campus graduate who applies later is a non-recent graduate.

How to apply, step by step

1. Count six months from your date of graduation to see if you are a recent or non-recent graduate.
2. If you are a non-recent graduate, get a written offer first. If you are a recent graduate, you can apply without one.
3. Check the current way to submit on the IANG page. ImmD has adjusted how GEP, ASMTP and IANG applications are submitted.
4. Submit with your graduation documents and pay the application fee.
5. If approved, pay the visa fee and collect your e-Visa.

How long you can stay

ImmD normally grants an initial stay of 24 months on time limitation only, without other conditions of stay. In practice that means your first IANG stay is not tied to one job. ImmD’s IANG FAQ describes the pattern of limits of stay as 2-3-3 years.

Extensions are where the job matters. When you apply to extend, you must have an offer of employment at a level commonly taken up by degree holders, with a remuneration package at market level. Our extension of stay guide covers timing and the online filing, and our change of employment guide compares IANG with schemes that tie you to one employer.

Fees

IANG is one of the specified schemes in the fee change of 26 February 2025. Each application, for entry or for an extension, carries a HK$600 application fee that is not refunded whatever the result. If ImmD approves, the visa fee is HK$600 for a limit of stay of 180 days or below, or HK$1,300 for 181 days or more. See our specified-scheme fees guide.

Common mistakes and getting help

• Missing the six-month window and then applying without a job offer. After six months you are a non-recent graduate and need one.
• Leaving the application to July or August and expecting a two-week answer.
• Taking any job to extend. The extension test asks for degree-level work at market pay.
• Assuming every non-local student qualifies. Check the programme and nationality rules on the IANG page.

If you graduated outside Hong Kong and have an offer, look at the General Employment Policy instead, or ASMTP if you are a Chinese resident of the Mainland. Hong Kong has no immigration consultant licence, and only ImmD decides an IANG file. You can compare firms that name employment visas in our directory.