HONG KONG, Aug. 25 -- The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) announced Thursday that it has reached an agreement with the Japanese Government to increase the reciprocal annual quota of the Hong Kong/Japan Working Holiday Scheme (WHS) from 250 to 1,500.
The move came due to the enthusiastic response to the WHS, the HKSAR Government said. The Secretary for Labor and Welfare Matthew Cheung and the Consul-General of Japan in Hong Kong Kuninori Matsuda signed and exchanged the documents on the quota increase at the Central Government Offices in Hong Kong today.
Welcoming the quota increase, Cheung said, "The Hong Kong/Japan WHS has been well received by Hong Kong youths since its establishment in 2010. Around 1,700 Hong Kong youths and 450 Japanese youths have joined the WHS so far."
He added that the substantial increase in the quota will provide more opportunities for youths from both places to broaden their horizons through living and working temporarily in Hong Kong or Japan while holidaymaking. It will also enhance the cultural exchanges between the two places.
Under the Hong Kong/Japan WHS, Hong Kong youths aged 18 to 30 who hold a valid HKSAR passport or a British National (Overseas) passport and have not participated in this WHS before may apply for visas. Successful applicants may stay in Japan for up to 12 months, during which they can take up short-term employment and engage in short-term courses.
Since 2001, the Government of the HKSAR has established bilateral WHS arrangements with 10 economies. Apart from Japan, the other partners are New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, Germany, Canada, South Korea, France, Britain and Austria. So far, over 71,000 Hong Kong youths have joined these schemes.
